


Scent of Roses

by Violetscented



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: AU, Death of Snow white and Prince Charming, F/F, FTL AU, No Curse, Slow Burn Romance, enchanted forest, maid and mistress
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-11
Updated: 2015-04-01
Packaged: 2018-03-11 19:30:57
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 62
Words: 95,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3332372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Violetscented/pseuds/Violetscented
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Enchanted forest AU. Emma Swan is born a week earlier than in canon. A man murders Snow White and Prince Charming just after Emma is born. Regina never casts the curse. When Emma is 25 she crosses paths with the Evil Queen and they become drawn to each other. Warning for some violence and cruelty being described at the start. Character death warning for Snow White and Prince Charming, no one else will die. SwanQueen and now complete!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: This is going to be different from what I usually write as I usually write sweeter stories. This is going to be all Enchanted Forest with its mostly medieval morals. For what it is worth, most of the harsh stuff will be in the first chapter. If you brave that then there will be a lot more fluff, love and sex further on. 
> 
> Trigger warning for the violent deaths of Snow White and Prince Charming and for slight mentions of marital rape.

Henric kneeled in front of her now. She watched his scarred and worn face with its salt and pepper beard and knew that he was absolutely loyal to her. She knew that he loved her. For some reason her often harsh treatment of him just made him love her more.

He never told her of course but his steel-blue eyes spoke volumes every time they met her brown ones. He had heard her curse the Charming’s a million times. He had stood outside her door as she cried tears of anger and sadness over how Snow White had treated her. No wonder he had gone so far in avenging her.

The Queen never truly meant for Snow White and her family to die. Killing her former step-daughter had been put aside, she wanted them to suffer but she wanted them to live. She wanted them to be miserable in this new land that her curse would bring them too.

She had just come home from meeting Rumplestiltskin. He had told her that she would have to sacrifice what she loved most to make the curse work. As she was held by her father and was trying to find the strength to take his life, the door was opened and Henric had rushed in. His armour was covered in blood spatter and he mumbled about how he had done it.

He fell to his knees in front of Regina and her father and his steel-blue eyes glowed with pride and wish to be of service to his queen.

“Henric. What are you babbling on about and why are you in such a mess? If you want to kill peasants in your free time then that is your concern but how dare you barge into my bedchamber and soil my floors. ”

Henric bent over in as much of a bow as he could create while kneeling. “I am sorry, My Queen. But I have avenged you! I have killed the secret-spilling trollop and her oaf of a husband.”

The queen stared at him in shock. “You killed… Snow White? But she is with child.”

“Not anymore, my queen. I heard rumours that she birthed the child earlier today. I knew that your enemy would be weakened and less on her guard so I took a troupe of men and stormed the part of the castle they were in. Killing her in her bed was easy but her Prince put up one hell of a fight. I am sorry to say that I lost most of my men. But any sacrifice is worth it for your glorious revenge, your highness.”

Regina felt stunned. Snow White dead? Why did that make her feel so bad? She would not need to enact the curse now. She had won! But Snow had been defenceless and she had just given birth. This was not a worthy way for the infuriating but brave princess to have died.

The queen didn’t let any of her thoughts spill into her tone as she coldly replied: “You have indeed given me my vengeance and you will be highly rewarded for this. We will speak of your methods and the fact that you did not consult me before acting later. What I wish to know now is what happened to the child?”

Henric was smiling almost inanely at her now. His heart was burning with affection and pride. He had sworn his battle-worn, calloused and increasingly wrinkled body to the beautiful Queen the moment he saw how sad she was in her marriage and now he had given her everything she could ever want.

“Oh did you desire the infant, my queen? It was sleeping in a crib in the room. I heard the bandit princess call out the name _Emma_ towards the crib and the child woke. When we had taken the two lives that you deserve as a tribute we left. I believe one of my surviving men say he saw that blue little fairy fly in and settle on the crib. If your majesty wishes, I can return and kill the infant as well.”

“No! No, that will not be necessary. I have no quarrel with the child. I have gotten my revenge. If that poor girl will be taken care of by the vapid fairies, death might have been a kinder option though.”

Suddenly the importance of what had happened hit her. No matter if Snow White had met an undignified and gruesome end, she was gone! Regina was finally free to try and find some small shrapnel of happiness in this world. She could once again sleep at night without feeling the hate eating away at her heart. She raised her hands up by her sides and felt as if a weight had been taken from her. She laughed and laughed and laughed.

Her laughter sounded frightening and slightly mad to her father but to Henric it sounded like music. He hoped that this would mean true happiness for his queen and he hoped that he might now be the elegant woman’s most trusted man and confidant. He knew he could fill that role so much better than the pretty-faced Huntsman that the Queen kept around.

When Regina had calmed down she sent her father to fetch some of the finest red wine to celebrate. Then she turned to Henric. She smiled at him like one would a dog who fetched your missing money purse. 

“Arrise my dear knight. You have done well tonight. I must confess that this is not how I wanted Snow White to meet her fate, death so soon after childbirth seems a little too callous even for me. Although, if you had told me that this opportunity had arisen I might not have been able to resist. Nevertheless, I would have liked to be the one to decide, to be the one who gave the order.”

Henric stood up slowly and reverently, despite his age he was a very strong and broad-shouldered man and tall enough to tower over his monarch.  “I am sorry, my Queen. I wanted to act quickly before your enemy had time to recover and prepare for any attack but I should have informed you and waited for your orders. Please forgive me.”

Regina almost glided across the floor until she was so close to him that she could smell the stale sweat and drying blood on him. She used all her composure not to let her disgust at the smell show on her features. She stroked the rough beard on his cheek with the back of her hand.

She cooed “you must still have a reward for freeing me of that little beast and her horrible husband. Would you like some land and a title perhaps?”

“No please your majesty… I wish to stay in your service. I did not do this to receive rewards. My only wish is to serve you and make you happy.”

Regina almost shivered as she thought of what ways he most likely wanted to make her happy. She tried her hardest not to image his calloused hands touching her. However, she was wrong. Henric was very well aware that the Queen did not desire him and he would never enter her bed unless he was certain she wanted him too. He had been forced to listen to the old king do that to his young bride too many times.

Every time it occurred he had been so angry and pained by what most men around them would have said was the natural order of things. However, throughout the horror of these nightly visits he found himself being impressed and proud of how the young woman managed to bear the torture without crying out. That was when he began to love her. The thought that someone so beautiful and frail-looking could be so brave and strong as not to let a sound pass her lips as her husband took what he wanted made him love her without measure.  

Regina looked at him now and felt some affection for the man who had risked everything to get rid of her enemies. She wished that the man before her had been her father instead of the cowardly and timid man who now brought them wine. She took a glass from the tray and handed it to Henric before speaking.

“Very well. I shall afford you a title and you may stay on in my service. I will make you captain of my guards and you will sit with me and my advisers in any war councils or important meetings. Will that be enough of a reward for you?”

Henric felt his chest swell with pride as he took the wine and answered her “that will be a true honour and my greatest wish, your highness. Thank you.”


	2. Chapter 2

It had been twenty five years since her parents were murdered. Everyone always told her that she was lucky that she been a baby when it happened. At least that way she didn't have to remember the heinous crime that she witnessed, they would point out with furrowed brows.

What no one ever seemed to consider was that this meant that Emma had no memories at all of having parents. She had nothing to remember, nothing to cling to, nothing to try and recreate if she started her own family. All she had was a constant longing for a family and a fear that she somehow didn’t deserve one.  
  
What she had instead was a childhood and teenage period spent with the fairies of the Enchanted Forest. It sounded like a little girl’s dream, like growing up with lovely colourful fairy godmothers. That wasn't quite how it had been for Emma. You see, fairies are not made to be mothers.

They all tried to have patience with the poor orphan baby but as soon as Emma threw up, grew ill or had a temper tantrum the fairies would be at a loss. Most of them would just fly around and wring their hands and wonder what to do with the strange creature that seemed to need something that they couldn't quite pinpoint. 

  
The Blue fairy was different. She was their leader so when the others fell short of the task of caring for Emma, Blue had to step in. She didn't know much more than the others but she pretended to as hard as she could. This was why anyone who came by to adopt Emma, out of pity or because they wished to improve their station by taking in a princess, were sent away.   
  
"Do you really think I can't handle something as simple as caring for a child?" Blue would hiss in an affronted tone when Gepetto or one of the dwarves came by to check on the child. And to keep Emma from telling the world just how useless the fairies were she was kept away from the other creatures of the Enchanted Forest as soon as she could speak.   
  
So Emma grew up with few friends. The only creatures she ever saw other than the fairies were the cook, the maid, the farmhand and the groundskeeper, who were all human commoners, and the small number of animals that the fairies kept around. Some cows and pigs for milk and meat, a fat vicious old cat to chase away the vermin and of course the wild swans that decorated the many ponds that surrounded the fairies castle.

It was the swans that Emma liked the most. She would sit and watch them for hours, admiring their grace, strength and freedom. Admiring how they could just fly away when they pleased while she was very much grounded and stuck here. She spent so much time feeding and speaking to the magnificent creatures that the groundskeeper took to calling her Emma Swan and soon the name stuck. Even the fairies would call her that even though they did not know, or care, where the nickname came from.   
  
When Emma became a teenager her feelings of being isolated and neglected grew. She was starting to grow resentful of the fairies who often seemed to forget she existed. The only time they remembered her was when she was right in front of their noses. Out of boredom Emma began to help the other four humans with cleaning the castle and maintaining the surroundings and soon the girl began to grow strong and lithe.

The girl had an elfin face with delicate features and green eyes and when the fairies did occasionally notice her they would chirp about how she should be wearing colourful dresses with lace and shimmer. After a few years of this Emma stopped replying that the trousers and simple laced up shirt she wore were more suited to tending to fireplaces and trimming hedges. It would only anger the fairies who would complain that she should be practising her flute or reading her books like a true princess instead. The truth was that Emma had broken her flute in two during a bad bout of rage a few years back.  
  
Many times during her childhood Emma asked Blue what her place in the fairy castle should be. Was she the cook, the maid, the farmhand or the groundskeepers? Blue would always look appalled and shriek "no! You are the princess, the true heiress to these lands! One day a handsome prince will come, he will fall in love with you and together you will reclaim the kingdom that the Evil Queen stole from your parents. All you have to do is wait for him and try to keep yourself pretty so he will see that you are his true love."   
  
Then the leaders of the fairies would flit away to deal with other more important matters and leave Emma to rot and seethe at the idea of her uselessness. Emma hated being idle and she hated the idea of waiting for some prince to come claim her like some forgotten money purse left in a dresser. If Emma was to reclaim the kingdom she would much rather do it herself. The groundskeeper had taught her some basic sword skills with two sticks when she was a child and she had secretly been practicing ever since.  
  
When Emma turned eighteen it was obvious to the four humans of the castle that she had become a very headstrong and very beautiful young woman. They were all about twenty years older than her and had all chosen to abandon the human society to live in isolation while serving the order of the fairies.

In a society where food was scarce and death and illness waited around every corner it could seem a good opportunity to give your life to servitude if it meant a roof over your head and food in your belly. Emma on the other hand had not been able to choose this life and the other human inhabitants of the castle pitied her.  
  
"Look at the little mite" the cook would say to the maid while tying her apron around an ever growing waistline "no one her own age to play with. And us being so busy that we don't have no time to play with her. No wonder she's grown up all angry and sad." The maid would nod solemnly, being mute that was the only answer she could give.

Still, they would both forget about her and get on with their jobs. Trying to manage a whole castle on less than a skeleton staff and then having the ditzy and overbearing fairies constantly in their way meant they barely had time to sleep, much less spend time with Emma.

  
The farmhand and the groundskeeper would be very busy as well but they tended to be less watched by the fairies and therefore more able to let Emma tag along as they worked. As long as Emma was a child they both doted on her but as soon as she began to develop into a young woman the groundskeeper started keeping his distance.

It was the cook who finally explained to Emma that her good looks were making him feel forbidden things and so he kept away to eliminate the temptation of her young body. This made Emma feel very torn. In one way she felt flattered that someone found her, an orphan who had done more physical labour than other girls her age, attractive. But then she felt sad that her new shapes and slight curves meant that she had to lose one of the few people she had to talk to.   
  
The farmhand wasn't bothered by Emma's beauty as he had been madly and unrequitedly in love with the Purple fairy ever since he arrived at the castle more than twenty years ago. For him a human woman held no allure anymore, he was spellbound by the glimmering little Purple who Blue usually sent out to the kingdom where Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip lived. And so Emma spent a lot of her time with him, learning about the world outside the castle and about her mortal enemy – the Evil Queen.


	3. Chapter 3

The Queen gazed into her mirror. At the moment the genie wasn’t there and so all that looked back at her were two deep-brown eyes filled with despondency. Despite that, she mused in a detached way that it was still what would be called a beautiful face.

She had used her magic to keep time from changing her features and so she still looked like a young woman. Old enough to be a mother and young enough to still be very much fertile. This was what she wanted to show the peasants as she kept them in their place with her strong magic and her heeled boots.

No matter what tales her youthful face told, it had in fact been 25 years since she had won her victory and safeguarded her kingdom. Since then she had kept every wandering throne-pretender and raiding warlord away from her borders by her excellent use of magic, a sizable army and her fearful reputation.

She had made friends with Maleficent and her old mentor Rumplestiltskin and together the three of them had been the magic triumvirate forces of the Enchanted Forest. But none of that felt enough anymore.

She had grown tired of learning new forms of magic, riding her many horses and fighting new insignificant foes. Sometimes she even envied Maleficent the fact that her arch nemesis was still alive and challenging her. Although to Maleficent’s face she always mocked the other woman for not being able to do something as simple as killing a magic-less girl.

The Queen wanted something more. She felt an aching in her chest that she could not explain. She knew it couldn’t be something as insipid as needing love, she had rid herself of such weaknesses. So what could it be?

Studying herself in the mirror she put her hand to her chest as if to touch the emptiness residing in there. The bare skin at her cleavage felt cold. No matter how many layers of black velvet she wore in her dresses and no matter how many fires she had placed in her rooms she still felt physically cold these days. With distaste she wondered if this was a physical side effect of aging.  

There was a knock at the large wooden doors to her bedchamber. The Queen arranged her features to their normal regal aloofness and barked “enter”. The doors creaked open and the man who had replaced the Huntsman as Regina’s personal guard and lover walked in.

Regina frowned. Pensive as she was, she was now thrown back into the memory of that one day when she overheard the animal-loving Huntsman complain to one of her horses that he was disgusted to have to share the Queen’s bed every night.

This had not only hurt her pride but something else had become clear to her. In the madness that she suffered due to her blind hate for Snow White she had believed every man in her surroundings to desire her. This meant that she had no qualms forcing the Huntsman to come to her bed, her warped mind had been so assured that no matter what anyone said, all men desired her.

Even when she was a teenager she remembered her mother brushing her hair in front of the mirror and stating that “no man in the world will not want you when you are in power. No matter how he denies it, he will want to take you”. 

That day when she heard the Huntsman’s words she finally realised that not only had she become so far removed from the real world that she didn’t understand that no meant no. She had also overestimated her power over the hearts and bodies of men.

Suddenly she felt disgusted at caging the Huntsman and using his body. She returned his heart in return for his vow to leave her kingdom and never return. She made it very clear that if she ever found out his whereabouts she would kill him. The last she had heard about him was that some peasants saw him follow a pack of wolves deep into the forest.

Since then the Queen had tried a string of lovers. The first few years it had felt unsatisfactory because the sex still had a strange taint of the warped sense of entitlement that she had discovered in herself. After that the problems had more morphed into that the trysts felt unsatisfactory, either because they felt meaningless or because they simply felt predictable.

Many a men had been shunned from her bedchamber after one failed attempt to please her and even those who did well enough to be allowed a return visit were only tolerated because the Queen wanted nightly satisfaction to help her sleep soundly.

That was where the Green Knight came into it. He was called the Green Knight due to his famously emerald green eyes. He was broad-shouldered, handsome and in his early twenties. He looked his Queen up and down hungrily and smirked in a studied manor that displayed his dimples and even teeth.

Regina was well aware that every peasant girl and maid in the land would have swooned at this but she felt strangely unaffected. She felt like she had seen it all and that she knew exactly what would happen next.

But she wanted to release her tensions and sleep. So she would let him lie in her bed while she rode him and he fruitfully and clumsily attempted to stimulate her pleasure point. Maybe this time he would get it right and she wouldn’t have to constantly break her stride to point his rubbing, lumbering fingers in the right direction.

She sighed and commanded “take your clothes off. I hope you have washed meticulously this time, I cannot stand a man who smells.”


	4. Chapter 4

Emma was getting a headache and she knew why. She hadn’t eaten supper and now her head was paying the price as well as her stomach. It had all been because of the Purple fairy. The cursed creature had flitted into the barn while Emma was helping the farmhand milking the cows and become very distraught at the sight.

She had reported it to the Blue fairy who had been livid at the idea that the pretty princess, whom they were trying to preserve until a prince would come and claim her, was doing something as demeaning and dirty as milking cows. Emma had been sent to her room without supper and the door had been locked and bolted behind her.

Emma had spent the first two hours re-reading the few books she had in her small chamber and doing the one activity that the fairies hated but could not keep her from doing. She had touched herself.

Ever since Emma was twelve the fairies had told her that there were certain parts of her body that would belong to her husband one day and that it was rude and disgusting for her to touch them. The Red Fairy had closed her eyes as she used her wand to point at Emma’s budding breasts and her sex to indicate which these forbidden areas were.

For the first couple of years Emma believed them and when she felt anything pleasurable from those areas she repressed and ignored it. However, one day she was angry at the fairies and felt rebellious and so she began to experiment with those parts of her body. From there on it became a ritual. Whenever she was angry at the fairies she would make herself wet with naughty thoughts and masturbate until her fingers became wrinkly.

Now, at the age of 25 she was an expert in the field of masturbation and she had also acquired the strange habit of touching herself when she felt angry.

However, it was no longer just kept for moments of anger and rebellion. If she was honest she was touching herself almost every night now and sometimes even in the daytime. Just two days ago she had been out in the grounds and had hidden in the bushes to relieve her needy core.

Emma usually fantasised about someone else touching her. She had no concept of who or what this something else was, it was just a presence. Usually the fantasies started with this presence coming in to the castle to open the gates for her. The presence never saved her, not like the fairies always spoke of being saved, it always showed up to _help Emma free herself_ but never to own her like her future prince would.

The presence would help her escape and then fall for her and start to touch her in all her forbidden places. The fairies always spoke of chaste kisses and kind embraces, but when Emma felt the warm wetness spread between her legs she always thought of rough grabbing and hard entering. She saw this as another sign that she could never be the princess that the fairies expected her to be.

She knew that she had to leave or she would go insane. She could never be the dainty, sweet, obedient and patient princess the kingdom expected. They would have to get someone else and Emma would have to find the life that she was meant for. Perhaps she could get a place at a farm or a big house like the cook’s nieces and nephews had? She knew how to tend animals, garden, clean, even some rudimentary cooking and she was strong for a woman.

So that night, two days shy of her 25th birthday, she spent a few hours going over the old escape plan she had started to concoct when she was 21 and packing her homemade bag and then she enacted the first part of her rather basic but manageable plan.

She looked at the small window in her room. It had stained glass in the pattern of a young maiden meeting a handsome prince. The Blue Fairy had chosen it for Emma. The blonde grimaced at it and felt her determination turn to steel.

There was also a small bookshelf where Emma kept her books and few possessions. They were all now packed in a bag made up of a blanket pulled together with a string that Emma had stolen from the maid.

Emma balanced the bookshelf precariously against the wall next to the window. Then she wrapped her most hated dress around her fist and placed her booted foot on the half-balancing bookshelf. Just as she kicked the bookshelf she broke the glass with a hard punch of her dress-covered fist. The sound of the bookshelf falling masked most of the noise of breaking glass.

Emma stood in silence and listened to her heart thudding painfully hard in her chest. After mere seconds she heard the Yellow Fairy on the other side of the door. “Emma! Emma! Are you alright? What have you done girl?”

“Nothing, Yellow! I was trying to get a book from the top of the bookshelf and knocked it over. I’ve gotten it standing again now. Sorry!” Emma quickly called back and hoped her voice sounded normal.

Part of the plan had been that the Yellow fairy had the watch this night. One of the fairies would always be available in case someone would need magical aid or if something was wrong in the castle.

The fact that it was the Yellow fairy this night meant that the plan could be enacted. Emma knew very well that Yellow was the laziest of the fairies and she had very bad hearing for someone of her kind. If any fairy could be trusted to not hear the glass breaking and then not check on the bookshelf situation, it was Yellow.

The fairy sighed irately and yelled “Emma Swan! You have to be more careful! Your prince will expect you to be graceful and elegant, not clumsy and noisy! Go back to bed immediately. ”

“Yes, Yellow. Sorry again!” Emma shouted back and then stood still as she listened to the faint sound of the fairy’s wings as she flew off.

As quietly as she could Emma removed the remaining shards of the window with her protected hand. When that was done she got the makeshift rope she had created from her bedlinen tied together and made sure that one end was firmly fastened to her heavy oak bed frame. She released the rope down her window as she had read about the hero in one of her books doing and then did a final check.

She was wearing her most hard-wearing and warm clothes, covered by her brown cloak with the hood, but had a dress in her improvised bag if she should ever need one. She also had her four favourite books, her comb and hair ties and the bottle of rose petal oil that the cook had given her as an early birthday present.

It was the only memento she would bring of her human companions, she certainly wasn’t bringing anything to remind her of the fairies other than bad memories and mental scars of course. 

She wished she could bring the swans with her for company but she assumed that her travels would bring her together with her favourite animals soon again. And this time she would be free like they were.

Emma placed the string on her makeshift bag over her shoulder to free her hands for climbing and then she squeezed out of her smallish window and began to climb down the rope of bedlinen. Her heart was almost freezing with the fear of the climb and her mind was racing with the possibilities of her new life in freedom.

It felt like the climb took an age and that she would be stopped at any minute but soon she had reached the ground safely. She adjusted the bag on her shoulder and began to sneak away towards the woods by the edge of the castle grounds. She had to hope that those woods would lead her somewhere safe.

 


	5. Chapter 5

“Get your hands off that, you filthy girl!” The Queen’s eyes blazed with anger, turning the warm brown colour in them almost black.

The maid who hand only been holding one of the Queen’s beautiful dresses up to her body and gazed at the effect in the mirror, jumped high from fright. Not because she had been startled but because she as well as anyone who had encountered Queen Regina knew what those dark eyes meant. Trouble.

“I-I-I am so very sorry, your highness. I was only examining the dress for loose threads or tears to be mended” the girl stammered as she felt fear blooming in her stomach, spreading its tendrils throughout her body.

“So, you should be. I am not a fool, _wench_. You were holding that dress up against your unwashed body to try it on” Regina spat. She wasn’t all that angry at the offense. Sure, this behaviour was to be nipped in the bud to keep the girl from touching things that didn’t belong to her, but it wasn’t really something that Regina was prepared to waste too much time on.

But it was to be a bigger affair than expected, simply because of the laws of build-up. You see the Queen had been irritated by this young girl before. The girl was frightened as a mouse and would panic and shiver at the slightest growl from Regina. This grated on the Queen.

She herself had been raised to always have a thick skin and to control her fear and other emotions. Anger was allowed because anger could be used. But fear, love, envy, exhilaration, anxiety and all other weeds in the garden of your soul were _weaknesses_ and would be used against you.

So this shivering girl and her constant worry and ever-present but unshed tears bothered Regina. She convinced herself that it was because she had no time for weak creatures who could not survive on their own but deep down she worried that there was more to it than that.

The girl had a build-up of her own. Her father had lost his farm and been forced to either send his many daughters to service in the castle or to be wed to husbands with enough wealth to feed them and not require any form of dowry. This girl, Belinda, had not been pretty enough to catch the eye of any suitors and so her father had sent her to serve the Queen.

He had done so with a heavy heart. Everyone knew that Regina treated her servants like vermin for most of the time. She had a few favourites that she didn’t just seem to tolerate but sometimes even appreciate. But everyone else had to share in Regina’s impatience, bitterness and misery as she told them off for any little mistakes and criticized their work endlessly.

She had a bad reputation as an employer and the many people who had left her service were usually tight-lipped about why they had left or been dismissed. Because of the Queen’s fearsome reputation most people assumed that she punished her servants with whippings or some kind of pain caused by magic. However that had only happened once when the Queen discovered a guard trying to rape a thirteen year old maid in the scullery.

That night she had strung the man up in the courtyard and hurled one of her fireballs at him and set fire to his crotch. It had burned fast and the man’s screams had echoed through the castle and the grounds. It was rumoured that the man died from his injuries but no one was sure. After Regina had allowed the fire to be extinguished from the man’s nether regions she had left him hanging there and sent everyone else back to work.

Later that night when the castle’s medic had gone to see to the man, he had been gone without a trace. No mention was ever made of the man again and no attempted rapes were ever reported in Queen Regina’s castle after that day.

Other than that there was very little violence from Regina herself. Before the death of Snow White she had often lost her temper and killed the many useless guards that had tried to capture the girl and failed. But somehow the death of her enemy seemed to have sated the Queen’s bloodlust unless she was at war.

War was another thing entirely. Many armies had discovered that when trying to take the Queen’s lands away from her you wouldn’t just be met with another army. You would be met by magic fire, trees that reached out and grabbed you to pull you to your death, sudden waves of boiling water coming from nowhere and then disappearing as soon as everyone was dead and so on. At the heart of this would be a beautiful woman on a tall, black destrier laughing as her enemies fell at her feet.

But her servants very rarely met with death or any worse physical punishment than a few raps over the knuckles, a mild beating or a hard slap to the face. This was what most of the people leaving Regina’s employment didn’t dare to admit, the fact that they hadn’t left because they had been severely beaten, but because none could stand Regina’s insults.  

It wasn’t just that she was extremely intelligent and therefore could come up with insults and quips that were much more complicated and true than most others. It was that she knew exactly _how to push people’s buttons_.  

She could spend mere minutes with a groundskeeper and somehow know that his weakness was that he lusted after his sister or mysteriously know that a kitchen maid’s greatest fear was spiders.  And when she found that sore, intimate spot… she would push it until something happened.

Usually the victim either pushed back or backed down and hid. Those who pushed back either earned Regina’s admiration or fury, depending on how they did it. If they gracefully and respectfully showed that they wouldn’t stand for that treatment they had begun to earn her respect.

Very few did this though. Either people became spiteful and vicious in their defence or they decided that Regina was a monster and avoided her. Sometimes Regina felt like she would kill for somehow who just stood tall and kept their calm when her comments were shot at them.

Belinda, the girl in front of the Queen now didn’t know that this was what Regina wanted. All she knew was that the dark-haired beauty terrified her. The smoky and rich voice informing the girl that she was a snivelling little vole achieved nothing but making Belinda tremble even more.    

The Queen had several maids but most of them were useless to her. Mainly because they were frightened out of their wits but also because they were new. They were new because Regina’s maids didn’t last. In the end they usually decided that starving would be preferable to the psychological battering they received at Regina’s mercy.

This was not because they were made of weaker stuff than the women serving in the kitchen or the men tending the grounds or even the medic and the rest of the assorted staff Regina kept. It was simply because they spent more time with the Queen. And particularly in the morning and in the evening when their regent was tired and most irritable. When Regina was tired she was less able to fend off the demons that haunted her mind and then she lashed out.

Now Belinda trembled in front of her. As had been established, the crime the girl committed wasn’t serious and Regina could very easily have let it go if the girl just firmly apologized and went on with her work.

But Belinda didn’t. Instead she curtsied so deep her knees almost hit the floor and sobbed “I am so sorry, your highness. I knew I shouldn’t touch it. But-but I thought you would be out riding for longer and would never know about it. I have angered you again… I am so sorry, most revered majesty. Please punish me but do not set me on fire!”

Regina stared at the girl in fury and her full lips snarled into a grimace, showing the scar above them more clearly. The Queen hated that even the people who were close to her, the people who dressed her every morning, combed her hair and even emptied her chamber pot didn’t know her well enough to know that she didn’t just set people on fire.

Suddenly Regina could taste bile in her mouth and couldn’t stand this a minute longer. In her most venomous tones she hissed “why do you think I would bother punishing a weepy little good-for-nothing like you! You are a burden to your family and a nuisance to everyone else! Get out of my sight before I have you stuffed and use you for target practice for my archer’s!”

Belinda ran. She ran down the stone steps and kept on running until she had returned to her father’s farm later that day. One of Regina’s guards saw her disappear and entered the Queen’s chambers with a knock and a bow.

“What?” The queen hissed impatiently.

The guard bowed again and asked impassively “my Queen, I saw your maid running from you. Would you like me to stop her and bring her back her to be punished for her insolence?”

Regina threw the nearest object, which happened to be a ruby necklace, at the stone wall and then snarled “no, let the little weasel run back to her hovel. I couldn’t stand her snivelling anyway. As the women who get sent here are always infuriating little weaklings, I will go out in my carriage this afternoon and survey the nearest villages. Surely somewhere there is a woman who can dress me and serve me without making my blood boil!”

The guard nodded and left. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you for reading this story. It’s very close to my heart so I appreciate the support (as in reviews/comments) a little extra on this one. Now many of you are guessing what will happen in the story in your reviews… well, I have a meticulously planned story arc so I could tell you but nope, no spoilers! 
> 
> Warning: there will be an UNSUCCESSFUL attack with threats of rape and violence in this chapter.

Emma gaged how much food she had. There were the rye biscuits and small bottle of runny honey she had stolen from the pantry a few weeks ago, a large flask of water and the bag of dried pork that she had taken from the farmhand’s secret stash in the hay. It wasn’t much and Emma knew that she would have to find civilization in the next few days to keep from starving or more likely, dehydrating.

She had survived her first night in the woods, despite the distant howls of wolves and the scurrying of dozens of unidentified creatures. Emma looked at the tiny whittling knife that she had gotten from the groundskeeper when she was nine. It was the only weapon she had been able to bring and she knew it would be less than useless if she was attacked by anything larger than a squirrel.

She yawned hugely. Her sleep had been fitful and full of nightmares about wolves and bears. She didn’t even know if this forest would have bears. She cursed the fairies for never teaching her anything useful. What need would she have of sewing and reading aloud? She wasn’t a princess. She was a …. Yes, what was she?

Oh it didn’t matter. Thinking and worrying wasn’t going to get her anywhere. Emma was the kind of person who took action. Why else would she be out here in the woods when she could be safe and fed in a beautiful castle. A beautiful castle which had become a beautiful cage. Even if Emma didn’t know what she was, she knew that she wasn’t someone who could ever live in a cage.

But she needed somewhere to go. She needed a roof over her head and something to eat, even if she had to work her fingers to the bone for it. And so the path up ahead seemed like a sign from the gods. Finally Emma had found something which could lead to a village or at least a farm. She hurried to it, relieved and for once somewhat hopeful. She came out into a clearing which led to the path.

But the clearing wasn’t empty. Emma saw the first people she had seen since the castle. Her first thought was to approach them and ask them for directions. Maybe they knew somewhere where there was need for a milk maid or some other kind of hired help?  But as she looked at them and they looked back at her she felt uneasy.

They were three men sitting on some tree stumps around a campfire. They were dirty and dressed in tatters. That in itself wasn’t anything to worry about but the look in their eyes was. Emma might not have been around a lot of men but she had been warned away from that particular hungry look by both the cook and the farmhand. Two of the men were looking at her that way and the third was looking similarly at the bundle of things she carried on her shoulder.

Emma felt the small whittling knife tucked into her boot and wondered if she should reach for it. She decided not to panic unless she had to and just nodded in greeting to the three men before walking round them to reach the path. She had just stepped out on it when they got up and followed her.  

“Hello there pretty lady. Where are you off to?” asked a gangly man with a scraggy beard.

Emma wasn’t sure if it was best to reply to this or to ignore the man so she decided to pretend she hadn’t heard him.

She started walking down the path when she heard one of the other men add “actually, I am more interested in where the hell she came from. Think she’s some kind of woodland sprite or somethin’? She looks like one with all that yellow hair!”

The third man had been walking quickly behind Emma and was now close enough for her to smell his stinking breath as he shouted “oh I hope so, Davy. Cus my papa always said that them sprite things take it up the back door, catch my drift?”

The gangly man laughed and shouted “so is that how we find out if she’s human or a sprite? We see if she’ll take it up the jacksy?”

Emma had enough. She turned quicker than the lash of a whip and hurled her bag into the bad-breathed man’s face. Considering the bag had books in it, this had the desired effect. The man was pushed backwards and Emma took off running.

The three men assumed she was running away from them and so they decided to give chase. What they hadn’t realised was that Emma wasn’t just running from them, she was running towards something. She had spotted a wasp’s nest up ahead. As she ran she opened her bag and took out the bottle of runny honey and the largest book she could find in a hurry. When she was under the nest she stopped.

Two of the men were almost upon her. The third was the gangly man who had lagged behind and was wheezing as he jogged towards them. Emma was out of breath too but the adrenaline was pumping in her veins and made her feel energised. For some reason she felt convinced that she could get the better of these three monsters.

It could have been her sheltered upbringing keeping her from knowing how these situations usually ended. Or maybe it was the fact that she had been burying her wish to fight all her life and she was now faced with a situation where she could let all that buried anger and determination out.

All she knew was that if these pathetic worms tried to touch her, she would bite their jugulars open and watch their life pour out of them in a big red puddle. They wouldn’t take her for a sprite then.   

One of the men, the one with the bad breath, pulled out a big rusty knife. He spat on the ground and snarled “that was a bad move, pretty thing. I don’t like to be hit with things.”

Emma looked at the knife and then at him. Then she pushed the cap on the bottle of liquid honey off and swung the bottle in a half circle so that the honey splattered out on the two men in front of her. It confused them and for a second they looked down to investigate what hit them. That was when Emma used all her strength to launch her heavy book up at the wasps net. She didn’t even wait to see if it hit home before she took off running with all of her might.

For the few milliseconds when she was unaware if her plan had worked or not, she firstly thanked her lucky stars that she was better fed than her chasers and so had more energy to run and secondly thanked the farmhand who had let her help with the cattle and all the chores around the farm, those muscles and that stamina would come in handy now.  

In fact she soon realised that it already had, as the book had clearly hit home. She heard the two men scream as the angry wasps attacked the first creatures they saw… and then kept attacking them to get to the sweet honey running off the men’s dirty clothes.

Emma was congratulating herself and was just beginning to lament the loss of the honey and the book when she saw something from the corner of her eye. As she had kept running she assumed she would have outrun the two wasp-covered men and their wheezing companion. But somehow the gangly man was still chasing her!

Emma didn’t know if the man had recovered from his wheezing and managed a higher speed than her or if he had somehow taken a shortcut to get to her. One way or another, he was on her heels and closing in on her to her right. She braved a look behind her and saw tiny, screaming figures in the distance behind her. Clearly the other two were still fighting off the wasps.  

She took a deep breath and steeled herself and then she swiftly rushed the man coming up on her right. He took a tumble and Emma immediately got up and got her the whittling knife out. The man was scrambling to get up and swearing to torment Emma in every way he could as she reached out and buried the little knife to the hilt in one of the man’s long legs.

She yanked the knife out again and the man screamed in pain. Emma was about to take off running again but he surprised her by not attempting to get up but instead just throwing his long body towards her on the ground and grabbing her ankles. Emma could hear a lot of noise behind them but she didn’t have time to worry about that now.

She stabbed the man’s left hand and then tried to do the same with the right. But he was tugging on her ankles with it and she lost her footing. As she fell to the ground she stabbed wildly with the knife at any part of his body she could reach. She had lost her confidence now and felt icy fear being pumped through her veins and into her thudding heart.

She was lucky as the knife hit the man in the throat. He started to scream but the sound soon became wetly garbled. Emma tugged to get the knife out again but it was not moving. She tugged for all she was worth and tried to stay away from the man’s flailing arms and finally the knife came out with a large spurt of deep red blood. It spattered all over Emma and she dragged her body away from the bleeding man in horror.

Suddenly Emma looked up and saw a large black carriage with white details drawn by the most muscular black horses she had ever seen. In front of it where three riders on black destrier’s of their own. So that was the noise she had been hearing. They all halted right in front of Emma and the bleeding man, who was still attempting screams that came out as wet hisses while trying to cover his wound with his hand.

The door to the carriage opened and a woman in a wide-rimmed black hat and a burgundy riding coat stepped out. Emma just stared at her. With everything that had happened she felt numb with shock, fear and adrenaline but the thought came unbidden to her mind… the woman in front of her looked extremely dangerous and impossibly beautiful.

The Queen on the other hand looked down at the blonde who laid on the ground stained with blood and felt a smile form when she saw the courage shining through a pair of green eyes. Regina knew that most people in Emma’s situation would be either a sobbing wreck or a murderous lunatic who would start to run when caught.

But not the girl in front of her. The girl in front of her sat up straight and wiped her tiny blood-covered knife on her cloak and croaked “thank you” with as much dignity and calm as she could muster.

Regina gave a low, throaty laugh. “For what, my dear? If I am interpreting this correctly, you have bested not only this brute but the two sad specimens covered in wasps back there? You don’t strike me as someone who needed help.”

Emma nodded but then felt that she had to defend herself. “Well, they were going to… attack me. And I think they were going to take my things.”

Regina gave another laugh but this one sounded hollow and bitter. “Oh they were going to take _everything_ they could get their filthy hands on, my dear. You can rely on that.”

She glanced at the bloodied man who was feebly trying to move and intoned “kill him” towards her guards. The nearest one pulled out his sword and swiftly decapitated the man.

Regina didn’t even watch him die. She kept her eyes trained on Emma to see how the blonde would react. As the girl watched the man loose his head there was a glimpse of pity which Regina disliked but it was soon replaced by a steely look of gratification. Regina wondered if the look meant that Emma felt that justice had been served or that the execution had been a mercy-killing for the dying man.     

Emma stood up with only a slight wobble and squared her shoulders. The cloak was half hanging off the girl and Regina could see the blonde’s bared arms, they looked strong and lithe. Useful, Regina thought. The girl seemed competent and strong and clearly clever enough to outsmart three bandits. Maybe she could be of use.

Regina stared at the girl and Emma stared back. Suddenly the Queen smirked at the complete lack of fear in the green eyes. She spoke in her usual, deep commanding voice as she asked “can you follow orders?”

Emma looked confused and then thought about the fairies for a moment before replying. “Only if the orders either make sense or if I am getting something in exchange.”

Regina pondered whether to slap the girl or congratulate her on that answer but she decided on a simple “say that you got room and board in exchange?”

Now Emma started to get it. For some reason this eccentric and clearly rich woman went about finding blood-drenched people to employ. Well, she needed somewhere to stay. Clearly she wasn’t safe out here.

“Yes, for that I can follow orders like you wouldn’t believe” Emma replied earnestly.

The Queen stifled a laugh and continued “I need a new maid. She has to know her place, be ready to do things exactly as I want her to and not shiver like a leaf every time I enter the room. Would you be able to fulfil normal ladies maid’s duties and meet those three requirements?”

“I can do that, Milady” Emma replied and kept her eyes fixed on Regina’s brown ones.

“ _Your highness._ “ Regina coldly corrected her.

Emma subtly drew in a quick breath and immediately curtsied.

The blonde didn’t know it but her final test was the way she looked at Regina when she stood back up. If she looked terrified and nervous the Queen intended to leave her here without a second glance. If the slightly taller woman managed to keep eye contact with Regina, then she would give her a chance.

As Emma slowly rose from the curtsy she looked over the figure of the Queen in front of her and felt a strange warmth in her stomach. It was a feeling she had never felt before… at least not while looking at a real person. But it was a feeling that tugged on her and completely outshone any fear. And so it was with a curious and slightly fevered look that Emma met the chocolate-brown eyes again.

It was a look that the Queen couldn’t interpret. But it wasn’t a look that had fear or defiance in it and so, it was a look which got Emma invited into the carriage to ride back to the castle.

  


	7. Chapter 7

“My name is Emma” the blonde said with a shy smile as she jumped into the carriage with a firm grip on her homemade bag.

Regina got in after her with far more grace and finesse and sat down opposite the blonde.

“That is of very little consequence to me. I will call you _maid_ or _girl_. You will address me as _your highness_ , _your majesty_ or _my Queen._ I do not know nor care who was your ruler before. All you need to know is that I am your Queen now and my word is absolute law and fact” Regina replied without making eye contact. 

Had Emma been told Regina’s name, she might have realised that this was the Evil Queen who was inadvertently responsible for her parents’ death. But as the only people ever using Regina’s real name these days were her father and occasionally Maleficent and Rumplestiltskin, Regina never bothered telling anyone her first name, especially not if they were servants.

It was an odd carriage ride back, Emma kept trying to get as much information as possible out of her new employer, without being rude, and she was failing miserably at it.

So far she had gotten as far as finding out where the castle was located, that her new sovereign possessed magic, what her basic duties as a maid would be and that unless she kept her mouth closed for the rest of the journey she would be turned into a hedgehog.

Now she was sitting quietly and subtly glancing at the woman in front of her. She had never seen someone so glamourous. Sure, the fairies always dressed in pretty dresses, complicated hairdos and magically applied makeup but it was all saccharine sweet and frilly.

There was nothing saccharine about the woman in front of her … she was more like the potent blackberry schnapps the groundskeeper used to sneakily drink. He would make it himself and hide a bottle or two in the blackberry brambles. One day when Emma was 15 she found the bottle and drank enough to make herself sick.

She could still remember the taste of it though. It was a complex, slightly spicy, strong, tart and sweet in equal measure taste and it seemed to make her entire tongue come alive with flavour. After that there was the alcohol-bite in the aftertaste and the warm burning in her stomach, followed by an elated and fuzzy feeling in Emma’s mind. The way the Queen looked reminded her of that.

Emma looked at the full red lips and the scar above them which only drew more attention to the attractive lips themselves. She found the structure of the other woman’s face so interesting to watch. The cheekbones, the nose and the beautiful deep-brown eyes with their smoky eye-makeup were all in such perfect balance. Emma hadn’t seen many human faces in her secluded life but even she realised that this must be a very attractive one.

Regina had been trying to ignore Emma and plan her next step in her ongoing endeavour to cultivate and grow her magic. Her plan had always been to one day overshadow not only Maleficent but even Rumplestiltskin, The Dark One himself, when it came to magic abilities.

But she was finding it hard to focus while the blood-spattered girl was staring at her. Those curious green eyes were focused so hard on Regina’s face that the Queen found herself wondering if she had a hair growing on her chin or if her lipstick had smeared. She didn’t want to succumb to the girl’s glances and actually check her reflection or even worse – ask the girl what she was staring at, but it was starting to grate on her.

So the strange game continued. Emma stared at Regina’s face, and what she could make out of the Queen’s body in her sitting position, with the unabashed nonchalance of someone who has never been told that it is rude to stare at people. Meanwhile Regina looked out the window in a desperate attempt to prove to Emma that she had neither noticed or cared whether Emma was watching her or not.

It wasn’t until Regina felt warm and decided to undo the top three fastenings on her riding coat that something changed. Emma’s gaze now fell to Regina’s chest and the skin that was suddenly bared there. Emma was so busy in her study of this new beautiful variant of the human race that she didn’t realise that her gaze had now gone from scientific to a strange, hungered look.

Emma didn’t quite realise what she was feeling as she watched the very top of the pair of tanned breasts until she felt that tell-tale heat between her legs. She drew her breath in with utter surprise. She had never felt that feeling while looking at an actual person, it was something that she only felt when she imagined her scenarios with the face-less presence of her fantasies touching her.

She had seen her own breasts and she had seen the cleavage of both the cook, the maid and even the miniature forms of the fairies’ breasts peeking up above their dress line. None of that had ever effected her, even though she been told that breasts were meant to be a desirable part of a woman. So why was she feeling _this_ now?

Was it because her new employer was so much more glamourous than the people Emma had seen before? Or was it the fact that Emma was out of the fairy castle? Maybe she would feel those forbidden and dirty things more often now? It was getting too much for Emma and she closed her eyes tightly shut while trying to calm her heartbeat.

Regina had noticed the effect her bared cleavage had created and so the second Emma squeezed her eyes shut, the Queen grinned a meticulous smirk and felt much more comfortable. She knew where she stood with the young woman now and she was looking forward to watching the girl blush her cheeks out when she helped undress her sovereign before bed.

Regina caressed her fingers down over the top of her olive-skinned breasts and gave them some silent but heartfelt praise. It was far from the first time she had used them to control and enchant those around her. A simple trick to be sure, but an efficient one.

Now she knew her new maid’s weakness and it was something that she could easily use to get the girl to behave to her own liking. Fancy that, the pretty little fighter liked the female form? That wasn’t unheard of in a female of course but it was rare and Regina hadn’t guessed it when she first laid eyes on Emma.

Emma still sat with her eyes shut and was trying hard not to think about the heat between her thighs. She was getting angry, both at herself for feeling this way and towards the fairies for never teaching her how this all worked. They had said that Emma shouldn’t feel anything like that until her Prince claimed her on their wedding night. If that was true, why did she have the strangest urge to lick the top of the soft-looking mounds that the Queen had just uncovered?

She tried to distract herself and thought about the bundle on the seat next to her. Suddenly she remembered using the bag as a weapon and worried that her bottle of rose petal oil had broken. She immediately opened her eyes and began to rummage in her bag.

Regina once again tried to ignore the new servant but she couldn’t stop herself from glancing from the corner of her eye as she girl brought up a glass bottle and smiled at it while mumbling “it’s fine” in a relieved tone.

The Queen wondered if the bottle contained some kind of medical potion, alcohol or perhaps even a peasant variant of perfume. Obviously she didn’t dignify the low-born girl by asking and instead continued planning her magical development. 

Now Emma felt the carriage come to a halt and unused to the jolt she almost propelled herself onto Regina’s lap. Luckily she stopped her momentum just before her outstretched hands touched the Queen’s knees.

A guard opened the door for them and Regina stepped out with her usual regal bearing. Emma followed her with her bag on her shoulder and looked up at the castle Regina was striding towards. The guard followed her gaze and chuckled “never seen a castle, have you farm-wench” and then he snorted.

Emma said nothing about the fact that a castle was about as unimpressive as anything could get to her. But still, this castle was different than the cage Emma had grown up in. This one had a strange but dazzling Queen in it, this castle was somewhere new, it was more grandiose than the one belonging to the fairies and most of all… it was Emma’s workplace, not her prison. That made all the difference. Emma looked up at the daunting place and smiled at the challenge that lay before her. 


	8. Chapter 8

 

As Emma hurried after Regina into the castle she expected her new employer to show her around. She soon realised that this had been a silly idea. The Queen asked a passing footman to take the new _upstairs maid_ to Mrs Cox. Then she strode towards her chambers without even a glance in Emma’s direction.

The footman stared Emma up and down, clearly taking in the mismatched clothes, the strange homemade bag and the blood-spattered but quite expensive-looking cloak that Emma wore.

True to her usual way Emma stared back with fearlessness shining in her green eyes and was ready for a fight in the man decided to make a comment.  However, all he said was “I will take you to Mrs Cox. She is in charge of the maids and will show you your new duties, where you will sleep and hopefully get you some new attire quickly.”

Then the footman stormed off and Emma did her best to follow him at the same pace. She was starting to feel tired. The adrenaline from the fight and from finding a job and a new home was wearing off and all she was feeling now was the fatigue and hunger caused by her time in the woods.

Soon they were heading down some stairs into what seemed to be a part of a huge kitchen. Emma could smell something being cooked, it smelled a bit like cabbage but she didn’t care, anything which was food would be welcome about now.

Suddenly they heard a shrill commanding voice shout “and why do you think it is acceptable for your kitchen maids to be moving into my territory, Mrs Havisham? This castle runs well simply because we all know our duties and stick to them. If I see one of your soot-covered, onion-smelling scullery rats trying to sneak into the Queen’s bedchambers again I will personally have you beheaded!”

A lower voice replied “Mrs Cox! You’re being unfair. Young Hetty was just trying to help one of your maid’s clean out the fireplace, you know, since you are short-staffed and all.”

The woman who was clearly Mrs Cox hissed “I don’t care if she was learning to juggle stake knifes to entertain the guards! No one but my staff goes upstairs unless it is on the order of the Queen herself. Understood?”

The woman in front of her nodded as a reply and the intimidating Mrs Cox turned to the doorway to see the footman and Emma standing there. The footman cleared his throat and in a respectful tone said “this is the new upstairs maid that the Queen brought back from her travels. Her Majesty wished for me to take her to see you.”

Mrs Cox questionably eyed Emma as she waved her hand at the footman to dismiss him.

“I am Joan Cox. You will address me as Mrs Cox. So, you are what the Queen found while she dredged the villages for anyone with more brains than a drowned mouse. Her Highness wasn’t gone long, meaning that she either found you quickly and was impressed or that she got bored and just picked up whatever she could find. Who are you, girl?” Mrs Cox asked suspiciously.

“I’m… Well, I am an orphan. I grew up in a cottage in the woods with my Godmother. I’m 25 years old and I’m a hard worker. The Queen, um I mean, her Majesty found me on the road on the way to the village to find work. I was attacked by some men and fought them off and that was when she…”

“Alright” Mrs Cox interrupted “I didn’t ask you for your life’s story. Do you have a name, orphan?”

“Yes. Emma” the blonde replied curtly. She didn’t like this woman’s tone.

“I see. Any family name you wish to add to that?” Mrs Cox answered flatly.

Emma thought for a minute. She hadn’t really needed a last name in her life. She had just been Emma or Princess Emma. But they had called her Emma Swan due to her spending so much time with the swans, maybe that would do?

“Yes, my name is Emma Swan” she answered in what she hoped was a confident voice.

Mrs Cox huffed out a breath but didn’t comment. Instead she started walking up the long stairs while waving her hand at Emma to follow. As they walked Mrs Cox explained a few things.

“You will be part of the maid staff, whom are under my supervision. You will be the upstairs maid in charge of the Queen’s personal care. That was why her Majesty wanted to find the new replacement herself. Being in charge of the personal care of the Queen means you will help her dress and undress and you will help her with her hair and jewellery” Mrs Cox said before she stopped to run her finger over a gilded picture frame on the wall. When her finger came away without a speck of dust she gave the tiniest of smiles before continuing speaking. 

“The painting of her face is something the Queen prefers to do alone so you will not have to worry about that. The styling of her Majesty’s hair will however fall to you. I see from your own hair that it was at some point arranged in a complicated braid, despite all those filthy blonde strands now flailing about your head like oblong insects. I suppose her Highness saw the traces of the braid and assumed you were versed in coiffuring” the intimidating woman added tersely.

Emma said nothing as she wasn’t sure if the Queen had even noticed her hair.  She didn’t speak up to tell Mrs Cox that she had indeed been taught by the fairies how to arrange hair simply because she was a princess who had to follow Royal customs for appearance neither.

Finally something the fairies had taught her would come in handy she thought as she answered Mrs Cox with a simple “yes, my Godmother used to be a ladies maid and taught me about dresses and hairstyling.”

“Good. You will be attending to her Highness whenever she calls you. Most staff in this castle busily go about their daily duties but you and the other girl who serves as upstairs maids, Agnes, are different. You are meant to be waiting close by to see if you are needed. This does not mean you will be idle, there is usually something to busy your hands with” Mrs Cox said as they finally came up the stairs and headed down the corridor.

“Most of the time you will dress and style the Queen in the morning and when she gets ready for bed at night. She will call on you when she is ready and you best come immediately when she does” Mrs Cox said and turned to look at Emma to see that the message had sunk in. Emma nodded gravely and so Mrs Cox continued.

“Agnes will see to duties like cleaning out the Royal bedchambers, bringing the laundry down and freshly cleaned clothes up. She is better with cleaning tasks than she is with withstanding the Queen’s mood swings, so your tasks have been divided that way” Mrs Cox explained as if it had been something Emma should have known all along.  

She continued speaking without waiting for any response. “Other than that the two of you will share duties like fetching things for the Queen or mending clothes and drawing her Highness a bath. You will always be upstairs and close to the Queen’s quarters. Anytime she wishes she should be able to call on you and you will be by her side in an instant. This is very important.”

“I understand” Emma said with a smile while thinking that she had been informed about that already.

Mrs Cox looked at her long and hard before muttering “I don’t think you do, _simple child_. You might have impressed the Queen with your pretty face and your blood-stained garments. But that will not last long. You have the possibly most difficult job in the castle, you will be dealing with our most revered Queen at her most intimate times.” Mrs Cox paused here to straighten her shoulders and to choose her next words carefully.

“Her Majesty is not an easy woman to be around and she is most certainly worse in the moments you are about to partake in every day. No personal maid to her Highness has lasted more than six months. Let’s see how long you manage, I personally doubt a _nobody_ like you will stay more than a week” the older woman sneered.

Emma’s brow knitted as she thought about this. Just how bad could the Queen be? Could she be ruder than Mrs Cox? Well, it didn’t matter. Emma never gave up and never let anyone scare her. She would tough it out.

In fact she was more worried about if she was going to be bored hanging around upstairs waiting at the Queen’s beck and call. Hopefully this Agnes would be fun, maybe the other upstairs maid could even be a real friend, Emma thought. She had always wanted a real friend and confidant, swans had never quite been able to fill that role.  

“Oh and another thing, the Queen cannot stand people with a foul odour. Therefore she believes in washing as meticulously as you can. I suggest you remember that and keep your body and hair as clean as you can” Emma’s new supervisor added.  

“That won’t be a problem. I am used to washing a lot” Emma replied honestly. She didn’t explain that the fairies didn’t like the way humans smelled and would make Emma have a bath every night. If the cook was busy and didn’t have time to boil water, Emma just had to have a cold bath. Just thinking about it now made her shiver and she hoped that the baths here would be warmer.

They were now next to a small wooden door which was adjacent to the bigger doors leading into the Queen’s bedchamber. Mrs Cox opened the door and inside Emma could see two small beds with barely any floor space between them. Perched on one of the beds sat a young girl who was polishing a pair of elegant black booths with a greased cloth.

“Emma Swan, this is Agnes Coulter. She has been the second upstairs maid for about three months now and she will show you were you can find a change of clothes and some water to wash with. I suggest you are quick about it as her Majesty could call for you at any time” Mrs Cox added with a last derisive look at Emma before closing the door to the small room and storming down the corridor.

Emma looked at the short, young girl on the bed and tried to smile as warmly as she could as she said “hi”. The girl smiled a frightened smile back and almost whispered “hi. Oh and welcome. I hope you have strong nerves!”


	9. Chapter 9

Emma just smiled at Agnes Coulter and said “I just fought off three grown highwaymen. One of them had a knife the size of your arm. I’m sure I can stand the Queen and her rude housekeeper.”  
  
“Oh she’s not a housekeeper. She is the _Royal Superior in charge of the maids and footmen operating upstairs_ ”Agnes corrected seriously.  
Emma stared at her for a moment. “Now that is just dumb. I have a book where the person in charge of the maids is called a housekeeper” Emma said as she dropped her bag on the unoccupied bed.  
  
Agnes stopped shining the boots and looked longingly at Emma. “You have books? I love books! I used to read the ones in the Royal library until Mrs Cox found out and gave me ten raps over the knuckles before banning me from all the Queen’s books.”  
  
Emma quickly opened her bag and took out two books at random which she then threw on Agnes’ bed. “They’re not very clever books I’m afraid. I was only taught basic reading and most of the books I have read have been fairytales or adventure books. I brought a few with me and you can read them if you like?” 

As soon as Emma had asked that she saw Agnes’ face light up. All of a sudden Emma felt almost maternal. The girl in front of her seemed so young. What could she be? 18, 19 maybe?   
  
The young girl suddenly looked startled and exclaimed "oh! But we need to get you ready in case her Highness wants you!"  
  
Emma gave a brief thought to what kind of way the Queen might want her. Her sexual education had been sketchy at best but she had heard the farmhand and the groundskeeper talking about wanting women and suddenly those words made Emma feel strangely fevered. She shook her head to clear her mind.  
  
Agnes jumped up and put the shined boots under the narrow bed. She waved to Emma to make her follow her back out into the corridor. Quietly they almost tip-toed past the Queen's chambers further down into the dark corridor.

Agnes opened a small door to their right and uncovered what must be a bathroom. Emma could see a large copper tub and several wooden buckets inside.   
  
One of the wood buckets still had water in it and Agnes pointed to it as she whispered "clean your face and hands with that. It will have to do until you can have a bath. There are usually five people who have baths up here, the Queen, the Queen’s elderly father, Mrs Cox, me and now you. There are only two or three hot baths run upstairs so some of us have to get in after one another.” Here Agnes stopped to nervously play with her auburn braid.

With a distracted look at the blood spatter on Emma’s dress she continued “we can’t all have our own bath because there isn’t enough staff in the kitchen to keep heating up water and not enough footmen and maids to carry all the buckets up here. So we have to share. I always hope to be secondsies after the Queen. She's always the cleanest so the water is almost unused. The footmen have to share with the gardeners and Billy says that their water is always muddy!"  
  
"The Queen's father lives here too? Isn’t he the king then?" Emma asked and interrupted Agnes’ babble.  
  
"Yes, he lives here but no, he’s not the king. He’s just old and sort of nice. He's in with the Queen now. He used to be her personal butler but he is too old and frail these days. Her Majesty can't stand replacing him though so now her personal maid does things like fetch drinks or announce guests. It's peculiar but then nothing gets done here the way that other castles or palaces do it. Partly because not enough people want to work here and partly because the Queen doesn't care about what the norm is" Agnes replied with a small shrug.  
  
Emma was washing her face and hands in the cold but clean water in the bucket. There was a tin box with the lid open on a large shelf next to a mirror, the box contained little white particles which looked like salt to Emma.

Agnes followed her gaze and explained "those are cleaning salts. They dissolve in the bath and help clean you. Be careful though, they'll give you a rash if you touch them when they are dry. Strange stuff, that! Belinda, the maid who used to have your job, used to say they were made by the Queen from magic rocks but I'm not sure that is true."  
  
Emma smiled at the babbling girl and gently asked "what about clothes?"  
  
Agnes almost jumped as she whined "oh, goodness. I forgot! I'll go get some for you. Just wait here!" 

While she was gone Emma enjoyed the cool water on her face and her hands and even took her clothes off to wash her feet, her armpits and under her breasts.

When Agnes came back in to the room with a plain-looking, fudge-brown dress with laces at the bosom she found Emma naked and undoing her braid. The young girl gasped at Emma’s unabashed nudity and turned around to give the blonde some privacy.

Emma was used to the fairies and her few human companions usually leaving her alone after baths and so was surprised to find that Agnes was so shocked to find her unclothed. Emma frowned as she asked “is something wrong? Should I… should I not be bare around you?”

Agnes swallowed loudly and stuttered “um, no. No, we will be sharing a bedroom and sometimes even take turns in the bath, so we are bound see each other naked sooner or later. I am just used to girls being a little more… modest until they get to know me better.”

Emma looked down at her naked body and saw muscular yet slender limbs, small but pert breasts and blonde wisps of hair in certain places. She considered Agnes’ reaction and realised that she had a lot to learn about being around people. She also realised that she needed to explain her possibly strange behaviour to Agnes.

“Sorry. I grew up in a cottage with only my Godmother for company. I have no experience with being around people my own age” Emma said shyly and reached her hand out to take the dress from the other girl.  

Agnes turned around and put the dress in Emma’s hand with a smile that now looked more comfortable and understanding than panicked.

“Oh! I see. Well that explains it. Well I’m sure we’ll be good friends and I will try to explain everything. Just ask me if you have questions. Now, I’m afraid you have to keep your own undergarments and shoes for now. We’ll check what your size is tonight and find you some stuff for tomorrow“ Agnes beamed, suddenly so much more confident.

When Emma was dressed and had laced up the dress, and actually found it quite nicely fitted at the waist and around the buttocks, they returned to their little room.

Emma opened her bag and picked up her bottle of rose petal oil and applied some to certain places under her clothes, finishing by adding a drop to the collar of her new servants outfit. It felt nice to smell of roses and not of blood and leaves anymore.

 


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: As the Enchanted Forest is a made up place there isn’t any particular historical accuracy here. I have tried to keep a vision of what kind of time they might be in and what they might or might not have had there though. If you find inconsistencies or have suggestions, do feel free to mention it! Thank you for reading and reviewing!

Just as Emma was about to ask Agnes about where the limits where for what jobs they did and what the footmen did, she heard a noise. It was loud and shrill and Emma remembered it from the castle she had grown up in. It was the bell that the people in charge would ring to make their servants come scurrying. Well, now she was the one who scurried.

Agnes whimpered “oh no, that’ll be the Queen wanting something.”

Emma smoothed down her new dress and leisurely replied “yes, I suppose it will. Don’t worry, I’ll go.”

Agnes stared at her wild-eyed and stammered “but-but you can’t. You haven’t put your hair up yet, you look like some forest creature with it down like that. Oh and you don’t know all the procedures around here either, the Queen will eat you alive!”

Emma smiled at her before hearing the bell again. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll explain about the hair and I’m sure she’ll understand that I don’t know the procedures yet. I’m new, remember?”

The truth was that Emma wasn’t just offering to save Agnes the horror of being in front of the Queen, the blonde actually had a strong urge to see her new regent and mistress again. She was curious about the woman that everyone seemed to fear but who had surprisingly chosen Emma to be her personal attendant under such strange circumstances.

She quickly left the room, aware of that the bell had rung twice and that Mrs Cox had stressed that the Queen’s calls must be answered immediately. Emma almost ripped open the large doors that led to the Queen’s bedchamber in her hurry.

When she entered she saw an old man sitting on a chair by the window. He looked tired but kind. Over by a large mirror on the wall stood the Queen. She was holding a golden bell with a wooden handle in her hand. Emma stared at the object as it was clearly too small to have made that much noise beyond the thick doors. The blonde wondered if the bell was somehow magically enhanced.  

The Queen turned to face Emma and furiously growled “you took your time.”

Emma bowed and reverently said “I’m sorry, your Majesty. I was just washing and getting dressed.”

Regina looked the blonde girl over and muttered “I suppose that explains the hair. In my castle the servants have their hair in a braid or a bun as to ensure that none of their filthy hairs end up in my soup or on my clothes.”

The Queen had walked over to Emma and now stood close enough to be able to pick up a few blonde tresses that had been resting against Emma’s shoulder. Regina held the portion of hair in her hand longer than she probably should have but Emma with her lack of understanding of social interaction didn’t truly realise that anything was amiss.

Regina had changed from the traveling clothes to a velvet dress the colour of red wine with a black corset made of lace. Emma looked at it for as long as she dared and thought to herself that the dress seemed to smoothly cover the Queen’s body as if it wished to embrace the brunette. She remembered the groundskeeper talking about women’s dresses that hugged their curves and now finally knew what he had meant.

Just as in the carriage Regina noticed the appreciating looks and found herself strangely proud. She couldn’t say why, she never cared what anyone so lowborn thought of her so it surprised her greatly to notice that she enjoyed the young girl’s hungry and somehow curious gaze.  

It wasn’t until Regina found herself pushing her chest out a little to draw attention to her cleavage that she felt her temper rise. What was she doing? Showing off to a maid? There was clearly something about this young woman that affected her peculiarly and clearly it must be the girl’s fault. 

Regina dropped the golden hair which had been resting against her palm and hissed “me and my father want some tea. Will lavender tea do, daddy?” Regina asked in her father’s direction with a suddenly kinder tone.

The old man had been looking at his daughter and the maid with the unkempt hair with a squint. He had noticed that Regina had touched the hair longer than necessary, he had also noticed the prancing Regina had done and the long gazes the two women had given each other’s bodies. He didn’t know what it meant but he did know that he had seen a ghost of a smile on his daughter’s face as she touched the new servant’s hair and that was something he saw too rarely these days.

He nodded his agreement to the lavender tea and Regina turned back to Emma and barked “lavender tea with honey on the side. Immediately!”

Emma hastily turned to run down to the kitchen to find someone to make her some tea and find some honey when she heard the Queen add “and after that I expect you to comb your hair and put it up in a civilized manner. Then you will come in here and show me so I am assured that my new maid doesn’t run around looking like a changeling.”

Emma swallowed a biting reply down and just turned to curtsy before leaving. As she walked out Regina tried not to smile at the scathing look those green eyes had given her. No matter what else this girl might turn out to be, she clearly wasn’t going to be a doormat.

From his chair Regina’s father mumbled “pretty wench, that. Shame she is but a lowly maid. But then your mother was a Miller’s daughter and see how she ended up, the mother of a Queen.”

 


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: As the bathing arrangement didn’t gel with a few of you I have explained that closer in this chapter. Then we’ll get back to the story! Thank you for any words of appreciation, they keep me writing.

 

Emma had finally found a kitchen maid to prepare some lavender tea and a small pot of honey. She was now carrying a tray with elegant china cups and saucers and of course the steaming tea in an extravagant teapot. The tray wasn’t perfectly balanced and so Emma was using all her focus not to trip on the stone steps.

When she arrived at the door to Regina’s chambers she realised that she had both hands full and couldn’t knock. What did servants do in this situation? She looked around to see if she could spot Agnes to either help her or to explain how she was supposed to get into the room with her hands full.

She couldn’t see the other girl and so she hissed “Agnes” quietly but urgently. No response so she tried again. At this second whisper something did happen. The door opened and the Queen looked at her with a gaze that showed contempt and a slight hint of merriment.

“Ah, I assume that the odd hissing is your way of announcing that tea is about to be served?” The Queen calmly intoned.

Emma blushed crimson with embarrassment and silently cursed herself. “Um, yes. Yes, it is. The tea being served I mean”

Regina sighed and moved to the side as she wearily muttered “I recommend placing the tray on the table. It’s a very good location for trays.”

Emma hurried into the room and placed the heavy tray on an ornate oak table by the wall. As the blonde began to take the cups and saucers off the tray Regina growled “leave it. We’ll serve ourselves to ensure that the usually quite tranquil ritual of tea doesn’t become a stressful event. It will also stop those long hairs of yours from getting into my cup. Go and arrange your hair and come back to show me it has been done.”

Then Regina turned away from Emma and continued speaking to her father about his rheumatism. Emma bowed and hurried out of the room, still cursing herself. She rushed to the small bedroom to look for Agnes but the girl was nowhere to be seen. Instead Emma picked up a white ribbon she used to tie her hair and a comb from her bag and headed for the bathroom and its mirror.

It was when she was about to open the door to the bathroom that she spotted Agnes talking to a footman. Emma looked closer and realised that this was not the footman who had showed her to Mrs Cox but a more handsome and younger one. He was smiling at something Agnes said before he spotted Emma. Agnes followed his gaze and saw the blonde as well.

They came hurrying over to Emma and Agnes introduced the new girl to Billy, a handsome young footman of slight build who bowed to Emma in a way which made Agnes giggle.

“Where are you going?” Agnes asked when the introductions were done.

“I’m going to our bathroom to put my hair up as the Queen commanded me to” Emma replied casually.

Billy laughed and said “your bathroom? You don’t have a bathroom!”

Emma looked at the young man who suddenly seemed less pleasant and far too cocky as she countered “yes we do, it’s behind that door” with a pointed finger towards the door she was about to open.

Agnes dealt with the confusion by explaining “that is not OUR bathroom. It’s the Queen’s. She and her father have their baths in there and then they go on their merry way, remember? They have no idea that we three go in after them. That was Mrs Cox’s idea. She reckons that we are too high up to be sharing the smaller bathrooms downstairs with the rest of the staff. She says we are meant to be in the higher echelons of service and should clean ourselves accordingly!”

Emma grimaced at this but said nothing.

Billy grinned at the face Emma made and added “you didn’t think that the bathroom with that big copper tub and that exotic cleaning powder would be in a servant’s bathroom, did you? The bathrooms downstairs don’t even have a proper mirror in them. Just little tiny things which are more dirty glass than they are real mirrors. Doesn’t have them there fancy tiles on the floor neither.”

Now Emma was reminded that she had grown up in a castle and while she had not been served and looked after like the Queen was, she had still grown up with the best rooms available and never really thought about how the other humans in the castle lived. She hadn’t even noticed that the large bathroom had a different flooring when she was in there.

“Ah, I see” Emma mumbled embarrassedly and continued “well, anyway, I am meant to put my hair up and show her Majesty that it has been done.”

Billy knitted his brow and asked “really? Her Nibs usually doesn’t give two figs about double checking things have been done. She usually just orders your supervisor to see to it. She must either really like you or really hate you.”

Emma shrugged as she didn’t know what to say. Agnes tugged on Billy’s sleeve and said “come on then, I was going to show you the books that Emma leant me. Now we can try to teach you to read, cabbage-head!”

With a quick wave both the young girl and the young boy were rushing off towards the minute bedroom. Even Emma with her severe lack of experience in romance, thought they looked unusually happy to be spending time together. She would have to study them and see if they had the true love that the fairies always said Emma’s parents had.  

She walked into the bathroom and stepped carefully on the floor as she inspected it. Yes, the floor was made of some kind of ceramics or marble. How had she missed that before? She shook her head at herself and walked over to the large mirror. She looked at the tin box with the white granules and had the strangest desire to put some in her mouth.

Luckily she stopped herself and began combing her long hair and then putting it up in an intricate bun. She worked as fast as she could without making the end result sloppy and when it was done she quickly stepped out of the echoing bathroom and headed for the Queen’s private rooms. She knocked on the door and this time it was opened by the Queen’s father.

He smiled broadly at her and slightly unnerved Emma smiled back politely. The Queen was seated by the oak table and reading what looked like a long letter, she seemed completely engrossed in it and without looking up she began speaking as if picking up conversation where they had just left off.

“The rumours were right, daddy. Those useless fairies have lost their little orphan princess and are now searching high and low for her. Apparently they have rounded up quite a few villagers who were friendly with the girl’s parents and they have formed search parties to cover as much of the surrounding lands as possible. Remarkable!”

The old man coughed meaningfully and muttered “perhaps we should not speak in front of the servants, my dearest?”

The Queen looked up from her letter and saw Emma. She put the letter down and got up as she said “oh, you again. Why are you back? I didn’t ring for you.”

Emma kept herself from blushing with fury at the Queen’s annoyed tone and slowly replied “your Majesty wanted to ensure my hair was up. Will this do?”

Regina looked at her with a bored expression but her father noticed that the boredom didn’t reach the brown eyes. She walked over to Emma and her heels made loud clicking noises as she did. Every time the shining boots loudly impacted with the floor Emma felt a confusing urge to look down at them.   

When she was close to Emma, the Queen ran a hand over the blonde hairdo and finished the movement under the bun at Emma’s neck. She just briefly but very deliberately grazed the sensitive skin at Emma’s neck as she did it.

Emma shivered at the touch and Regina suppressed a pleased smile at how easy it was to toy with the beautiful girl. With more kindness in her tone than she had planned she replied “yes, that will suffice. You may take the tray away now. I wish to speak to my father alone.”

Emma picked up the tray next to Regina and began to walk out the door. As she did Regina found her eyes wandering down to the shape of the young woman’s buttocks which could just be made out through the plain dress.

She quickly averted her eyes before her father noticed and returned her gaze to the letter bearing the news that Snow White and Prince Charming’s heir had gone missing. In later times she would revisit this memory and wonder how she didn’t put two and two together and guessed who the young girl carrying the tray was.

The answer was always the same, Regina expected the offspring of Snow White to be a spoiled little princess with her mother’s raven hair. It never occurred to her that the spirited blonde who was always ready for a fight and who was so willing to take her role as a servant could be the child that she inadvertently had caused to be orphaned 25 years ago.  


	12. Chapter 12

The next day it was a brisk and dark morning despite it being past 10 a clock. As the young, lanky stable boy brought the Queen’s destrier to her he debated whether or not to say something about the weather.

He had been told that you never question the Queen but considering the ominously darkening skies he couldn’t just be quiet, his mother had taught him better manners than that.

He handed the reins to the imposing woman in the black riding coat and leather trousers and quavered out the words “frightfully dark day, your Majesty. It looks like the skies are about to open at any given moment now.”

Regina adjusted her black leather riding gloves and intoned “yes, luckily I do not shrink if I come in contact with water” before accepting the reins from the boy and dismissing him with a hand gesture. He gave a small bow and hurried back to the stables.

Regina ran her hand over the muscular horse’s flank and ever so quietly whispered “you don’t mind the bad weather, do you? I will take care of you out there, I just need to get away for a while.”

Then she mounted the large horse with impressive grace and took off in a slow trot. Not until they had cleared the castle grounds and the stables did Regina make Deliverance speed up. It was she who had named the horse and while everyone had shaken their heads at the choice of name, it had been obvious to Regina.

Deliverance or maybe even freedom was what riding meant to her. While she was riding she was free from everyone’s expectations and disapproval. It was also the only time she was delivered from the torment of that constant aching emptiness inside her.

When she was on horseback she was in complete control but at the same time she was carried and taken care of by the loyal animal beneath her. That was the magic of her relationship with Deliverance and the other horses. Regina looked after them and cared for them and in return they took her away from her troubles and away from herself.

She left her dark thoughts in that stuffy castle and she let her most dependable companion carry her away. Together they would ride so hard that the wind caused Regina’s eyes to tear up and her hair come out of its braid. That was what was happening now. Deliverance was moving as fast as Regina could make him without risking damage to his muscles.

Suddenly she felt a smile form on her lips. It wasn’t a smile of happiness because her heart still felt heavy, it was a smile of relief. The beautiful smile looked out of place with the surrounding darkness as the day grew even cloudier. Rain was most certainly coming.

After her marriage Regina hadn’t ridden much, it was a habit she only picked up again when Leopold died. Her mother had taught her that it wasn’t suitable for a Queen to do such physical endeavours and her husband had agreed and added that Regina riding could damage any possible heir they might beget.

Luckily a pregnancy never happened, although sometimes Regina had wished it would. If she could just have become pregnant and borne a boy the dreaded nightly visits from her husband would have stopped.

Suddenly Regina’s grip on the reins hardened and she found herself thinking that she should have had Leopold killed sooner than she did.  Another thought came onto her mind unbidden, it was a thought which had often come to her since her marriage had shown to be everything but fruitful, Regina wanted a child.

She had tried to adopt a few times but the local children and their guardians were all too afraid of her. Hansel and Gretl had even refused her. She had considered adopting a baby but she feared it would grow up to despise her, like she despised her own mother.

Some nights when she lay awake thinking about children she thought about the baby which Snow White had given birth to. Maybe she should have taken the baby and not left it with the supercilious and outlandish fairies. A sharp pang struck Regina’s heart and she hurried Deliverance along further to leave the guilt behind them.   

Now the skies really did open. The rain went from a few tentative drops to a complete downpour almost immediately. Regina considered turning back but then the temperate rain felt quite good as it washed down on her. She couldn’t see much but as she was out in the fields there wasn’t really much to collide with except the occasional tree, and Deliverance would see that before she did.

She was glad that the stable boy hadn’t convinced her not to go out. She had needed to clear away the cobwebs and move her muscles, which often strained from the heavy dresses and high heels she wore. Now her thighs and core engaged to meet Deliverance’s steps and the physical exertion made her mind go quiet.

Of course she would not have been able to explain that to the young stable boy who tried to warn her off this endeavour. Regina felt her breath catch in her chest as she realised that Daniel would have never allowed her to go out riding in this weather. It had been so long, and yet she still missed him agonizingly much. She wondered if she would ever be able to dull that pain.

For the last 25 years after she had finally won over Snow White, she had tried falling in love with several other men, she had even accepted advances from a beautiful duchess from a neighbouring land.

But no matter how she tried to love, her feelings always paled to those she had harboured for Daniel and so she had given up on romantic love. She had her father and her horses, that was all the love she needed. From everyone else she would settle for respect, fear and desire.

Regina noticed that Deliverance was getting tired and she stopped the large horse by some bushes. She sat still in the saddle and looked up at the rain, felling it wash against her face. She knew it wouldn’t ruin her makeup as that was magically created and her hair could be re-done by the new maid when she returned to the castle.

She found herself giving an amused sigh into the falling rain as she thought of the new maid. Regina hadn’t been undressed by the girl last night nor had she been dressed by the blonde this morning, it had been the wretched Agnes and her trembling hands who had done those duties with a mumbled “if it please your Majesty. The new girl doesn’t know her way round these complicated garments yet. I will teach her tomorrow.”

Regina had felt disappointed at this but obviously she couldn’t let that show. That blonde was going to be trouble… and somehow that made Regina feel a twitch of energy inside her morose mind.

Those defiant sea-green eyes kept things from being, well, boring. That probably wouldn’t last, the girl would annoy her soon and then just be another burden to try and shake off. But for now, the strange wench really did make things more interesting.  


	13. Chapter 13

“Ow, not so rough. Pull it tight but do it slowly so I can inhale while you pull” Agnes explained to Emma who was practising lacing up a corset. Agnes had snuck into Regina’s bedchamber while the Queen was in a meeting with her advisors and taken out some clothes for them to practice with.

Emma had quickly learnt how to work the many clasps and buttons on the complicated dresses and the boots hadn’t been a problem either, but lacing the corset had been surprisingly troublesome.

Emma blamed it on the fact that the shy Agnes kept her white shift, which was the only nod to underwear the servants would have as they did not wear corsets, under both the Queen’s corset and dress.

This wasn’t that much of a problem when they practised with the kind of corset that fitted under the dress but when they tried one that was meant to go on top, like a waistcoat, Emma struggled to lace it up correctly. Which was why they had spent way too much time on this task and why Emma was now bored witless.

But then she thought about the fact that she might be undressing the Queen tonight and suddenly she stopped feeling bored. This was however more to do with her fear of getting it wrong and seeming foolish in front of the Queen than anything sexual.

In fact Emma didn’t feel completely sure that her raised heartbeat and odd tingling at her core was truly due to sexual desire, it didn’t seem likely if it only happened when she looked at the Queen.

Emma’s impressive new employer didn’t fit any of the criteria of what Emma had been told would wake her sexual urges. Firstly, she hadn’t gotten to know the Queen at all. Secondly, the Queen hadn’t come to ask for her hand in marriage. Thirdly, no matter what else the Queen was, she most certainly wasn’t a man.

Emma’s mind lingered at that thought and replayed what the Queen’s body looked like, or at least the parts that Emma had seen in the carriage. The smooth, olive skin at the beautiful woman’s chest and the tops of those irresistible mounds that rested there.

The Queen’s beautiful hands with the slightly raised veins and the elegant fingers, her almost hourglass-like shape that Emma felt no corsets or elaborate dresses could ever hide and of course, that face. Those mesmerising and surprisingly inviting eyes and the perfectly moulded cheekbones and chin.  Most of all… those enticing, full lips which looked so warm and soft and had that incredible little scar above them. Emma found herself thinking about licking that scar, letting the tip of her tongue trace the tiny slit.

“OW! Emma, watch it!” Agnes exclaimed and Emma realised that she had tugged the laces so hard she nearly split the young girl in two. Emma apologized profusely and thought that maybe she somehow was desiring the Queen sexually after all. The only problem with that was that Emma was now hours from undressing the daunting woman. She swallowed hard and shut her eyes tight, she would have to control herself and not just… stare.

 

* * *

 

 

Regina felt restless. It wasn’t just because she had been in meetings with her advisors most of the day, that was after all to be expected when the fairies were on the loose hunting for missing royal brats and when Maleficent was once again waging war to try and kill the tedious Aurora off.

No, the restlessness was something else. Boredom maybe? Or maybe the gloomy thoughts about being childless from her ride had stayed with her? Perhaps it was just the constant rain which made her depressed.

The rain, it really had done a number on her clothes and her hair. She had returned as drenched as if she had fallen into a pond. Regina unconsciously touched her hair as she thought about it, it was now up in an elaborate coiffure which contained enough pins to make a small sword if put together.

Or at least that was the way it had seemed when the new maid placed them all in Regina’s hair and meticulously coaxed every darkbrown strand into place. She had to admit that the girl had been gentle though. Regina had feared that the clearly inexperienced servant would prick her with the pins or accidentally pull her thick hair, but no, the blonde’s hands had moved quickly and painlessly through Regina’s tresses. It had actually felt quite nice, but that was clearly just because Regina had been tired and slightly vulnerable. Obviously.

Regina came to a conclusion, she would have to try and end this restlessness by more physical activity. As soon as the meeting was over she would send a message to the Green Knight. He might be pompous and rather disappointing in bed, but he was the best of the lovers available to her lately.

 

* * *

 

 

That evening Emma finally felt confident in her corset work and Agnes had explained to Emma how the Queen’s many outfits worked in the hope that Emma would remember where all the fastenings were located in the different garments.

Now Agnes and Emma were sitting on their beds with a cloth rag and a mixture of water and vinegar with which they were polishing some of the Queen’s jewellery. They were meant to do this down in the kitchens or the cramped servant’s areas downstairs but as most of the overworked downstairs staff were very sceptical to their upstairs equivalents, accusing them of snobbery and boot-licking, both Agnes and Emma had decided that it was nicer in their little room.

As many candles as they had been able to scavenge were lighting up the small room so that they could see what they were doing. Emma let Agnes talk while they worked. It was easier that way, Emma didn’t have to come up with lies to hide her past and she got interesting gossip about the rest of the staff to boot. This gossip included young Billy who apparently was “a clod, but a clod with a pure heart and a good sense of humour” according to the young girl.   

Agnes was just starting to talk about the gardeners when they heard the bell. Agnes froze in fear on the spot but Emma just felt her heart leap in her chest with excitement. She tried to keep this from showing as she got up and a little too calmly for it to seem genuine said “I’ll go. Let’s see if my training has paid off.”

Emma hurried across the corridor to the big doors and knocked. Her heart had stopped the exited leaping and was now just thudding hard in wild panic. Was she ready for this? Did she remember which dress had the hidden buttons on the side? Would she remember all the pins in the Queen’s hair? Would she be able to concentrate as the clothes slid off the beautiful monarch’s body?

“Enter” Regina called out and Emma immediately walked in. The Queen didn’t turn to look at her, she was standing by the mirror on the far wall and peering into it. Emma could have sworn that she saw a man’s face on the other side of the glass but when she looked again it was gone.

The rain was still pouring down and Emma could hear it tapping out a steady rhythm against the windows. Unlike every other room in the castle, this one didn’t feel cold. A roaring fire burned in the grate but Emma wondered if it was all that was heating the naturally cold stone walls.

Still gazing into the mirror, the Queen drawled “I will be having company tonight so I expect us to get the undressing over and done with speedily. You do know how to perform those duties now I assume?”

The low, husky voice somehow seemed to surround Emma where she stood and made the little hairs on the back of her neck prick up. Emma tried to speak but found that her mouth was dry, she silently cursed her nervousness and forced herself to wet her lips and speak. “Yes, your Majesty. Agnes has been teaching me for most of the day.”

The Queen gave a throaty laugh. “Oh you poor girl, you have been undressing that little waif of a girl all day? You have my sympathies. Unless you enjoy undressing her of course? Perhaps she is helping you _settle in to your new position_?”

Emma looked confused at this. She knew the Queen was goading her but she wasn’t completely sure if the Queen meant to insult Agnes or to imply that something erotic was happening between them. Or maybe both? Emma wished she could keep up with the Queen so she knew how to respond. As she didn’t, she simply stared at the other woman and stated “she has been very nice to me.”

Regina looked at Emma with a raised eyebrow and a smirk and purred “Oh I bet she has. By the way, it’s _she has been very nice to me, your Highness_ , remember?”

Emma frowned with irritation, partly at herself for not remembering to title the Queen and partly because the Queen was clearly going to make this undressing process even harder than it already was.

Regina realised that her smirk, which had been there simply as a mask to play with the girl, was at risk of becoming a real smile. The young woman with the defiant sea-green eyes was blushing and balling her hands into fists at her sides. Regina felt like she was playing with something flammable and that it could burst into flames at any second. It surprised her how much fun she was having.

She walked over to Emma in a painfully slow pace. When she had arrived in front of the girl she purred “tell me, wench. Was she _nice_ to you last night? After she had undressed me?”

“I don’t know what you mean, your Majesty” Emma replied earnestly.

The Queen’s smile grew wolfish. “I mean… did she… sleep in your bed? Did she _welcome you to my castle properly_?”

Emma felt thoroughly confused now. Agnes would never do _that_ , she only felt that way about Billy, didn’t she? But then Emma didn’t know that and to be honest she didn’t know if you could feel _that_ for more than one person at a time. Hell, she wasn’t even sure what _that_ was!

Luckily she didn’t have to reply as Regina continued without her input.

“No, I suppose she didn’t. I’m afraid that undressing me and sleeping so close to a beautiful blonde is wasted on young Agnes. Pity, really. I prefer to be disrobed by someone who appreciates what she has the honour of getting to see. Tell me _new girl_ , do you think you’ll have the sense to appreciate what you are about to uncover?”

Once again Emma felt her dry mouth refuse to work, she opened it to speak but then closed it again, she simply had no idea what to say. Had there been a compliment in there? The Queen had described her as a beautiful blonde after all.

But then she was clearly messing with Emma and so probably didn’t mean it, she realised. Had the Queen been anyone else she would have told her to go hang herself but as it was the Queen… all Emma could do was stare.

Regina smiled once more and whispered “I wouldn’t bother with speaking, dear. Your eyes tell me everything I need to know.”

Then she walked over to the bed and drawled “let’s get this over with. I expect to be naked and have my hair down before my male bed-warmer makes an appearance” before turning her back to Emma and bowing her head slightly to give Emma access to the fastenings at the back of her neck.

Emma felt her palms start to sweat and dried them on her hips before approaching the Queen and with trembling hands beginning to open the top clasp at the back of the dress.

Regina grinned at that her plan had worked, the girl hadn’t realised that she was undressing her first which of course meant that they would be going through the lengthy process of taking her hair down while she was stark naked. Regina couldn’t wait to see the look in those alluring eyes as the blonde tried to keep them off her body.  


	14. Chapter 14

Emma undid one by one of the tights clasps on the back of Regina’s dress with her hands still trembling. When she reached the last one, her hands were at the Queen’s perfectly rounded rear. Emma tried not to think about that as she pulled the upper part of the dress down to rest on the Queens’s hips.

Then she moved around and kneeled at the side where the hidden buttons that would release the dress over the hips and derrière were located. Or so Emma had thought. She felt through the multi-layered fabric but couldn’t find the hidden buttons.

“I have to say, it would be nice to have this dress off before sunrise” Regina sighed impatiently and Emma stared up at her with anger in her eyes. Regina stared back at amusement and felt surprised when she noticed a tension of her areolas which usually meant her nipples were about to harden. She hid her surprise but still felt like she wanted to help the woman who so successfully was distracting her from her restlessness.

She put a finger under Emma’s chin and lifted her face slightly to ensure eye contact before whispering “other side” with a mischievous smile. Emma rose up from her knees so quickly that she felt dizzy and moved around Regina to kneel by her other side.

She let her hands ruffle through the layers of fabric on that side and found the little buttons. She undid all three of them and then with a good grip on the dress, which ensured that she would catch it before it fell to the floor, she began to tug downwards.

The Queen gave a well-practised flick of the hips which made the release of the dress go quicker and soon Emma’s hands were filled with the heavy dress. Regina stepped out of it and Emma sucked in a rapid breath at the sight of the Queen wearing only her black corset and her equally black boots.

Too late did Emma realise that she had forgotten Agnes’ order of undressing. It was supposed to go: hair, boots, dress and if worn underneath, the corset. Now Emma would have to stay kneeling to unlace Regina’s high heeled boots while the Queen was naked from the waist down. Not to speak of the lengthy process of undoing the complicated coiffure with only the small black corset hiding the other woman’s breasts and upper waist. Damn. 

Emma gingerly placed the heavy dress on the bed so that she could take it with her as she left. When she turned around to return to the Queen’s side she saw the gorgeous creature smirking at her with her eyes flashing dark with amusement and something else… something that Emma couldn’t pinpoint.

The blonde fought so hard not to take her eyes off the warm brown ones meeting her gaze, terrified of where her eyes might land if she did. Regina felt a twinge between her legs when she saw the panic and arousal in Emma’s eyes, suddenly it felt very important to make the girl look at her body.

Regina let her hand remove a non-existent speck of dust from her pubic hair and grinned as that very simple trick immediately made Emma’s gaze follow her hand. The maid swallowed hard as she saw the dark curls between Regina’s thighs, the hair was so much darker there than her own and Emma stared transfixed despite a voice in her head screaming for her to stop.

Regina opened her red lips to say a single word in her low, smoky voice. “Boots.”

Emma nervously licked her lips and forced her eyes to wander up the Queen’s body until they met the chocolate-brown ones.  

“Huh?” Emma asked senselessly.

Regina couldn’t help but laugh. She had expected this to be a fun game of controlling the clearly drooling young woman but for some reason the silly girl kept making her smile and laugh. She had to fight the urge to help the hapless wench instead of playing with her. 

When she had stifled the laugh, which unbeknownst to Regina was making Emma’s heart pound as hard as the pleasure centre at the apex of her thighs was, the Queen added more words to her previous statement. “You should probably remove the boots before you start on the corset, don’t you think… dear?”

Emma nodded gratefully and hurried over to kneel in front of Regina once more, when she was seated she gave a brief look up as her hands settled on the laces. That look up meant that her eyes connected with the dark triangle between the Queen’s legs again and without realising it Emma gave a little whimper of confused arousal.

Regina on the other hand was fighting an unexpected urge to put her hand on the back of Emma’s head and push it towards her crotch. But then as she looked at Emma’s bewildered expression she realised that the girl might not have a clue what to do if Regina was to act on that impulse.

A crease formed on the brunette’s magically youthful forehead as she quietly said “tell me… sorry, what is your name?”

Emma swallowed hard and mumbled “Emma” as she struggled with the bootlaces and her trembling fingers.

The Queen gave a brief nod as she fought with the twinges of affection her heart was surprising her with and continued in a honeyed voice “Emma. I see. Tell me, Emma, are you a virgin?”

The blonde dropped the laces and in irritation of this and the discomfort she was feeling she forgot her place and muttered “none of your business.”

The Queen felt the twinges of affection start to fade and her relish of the game returning at the disrespectful reply. She leant forward slightly, reached her hand down and then grabbed Emma’s meticulously braided bun in a firm grasp.

Emma yelped as she felt it and stared up at the Queen with anger cloaking the fear in her eyes.

When she knew that she had the girl’s attention and that she was aware of the severity of the situation Regina released the hair and instead repeated her gesture from earlier when she put a finger under the blonde’s chin and lifted her face. 

As she did so she was momentarily distracted by the slight dip in the blonde’s exquisitely shaped chin. She looked at the dip and then followed the girl’s sharp jawline to the side of her face in appreciation. The pale skin was so smooth that it looked like milk, she thought.  

Furious for allowing herself to be distracted by the beauty of a servant, and a girl at that, Regina growled “you will answer me without delay, without bending the truth and most certainly without sarcastic responses. Now tell me… Are. You. A. Virgin?”

Emma clenched her jaw before hissing “yes” through gritted teeth.

Regina had known that this must be the case from Emma’s behaviour and most of all her confusion whenever arousal overtook her. But still the hissed word hit home. How old was this girl? Surely not that young? Most girls over 20 had experienced at least one roll in the hay. Unless they had very diligent and protective parents indeed.

Regina let her finger caress along the symmetrical jawline and enjoyed how shallow the blonde’s breathing got. She looked at the young woman’s naturally pink lips and wondered how they tasted.

While the Queen was pondering that Emma, who was still kneeling in front of the Queen who was naked from the waist down, was not just enjoying the touch of Regina’s finger but also the scent that now lingered in the air.

She knew that smell, she remembered it on her fingers and on her pillow on the few occasion when she had ridden it. With sudden shock Emma realised that it smelled different, smokier she thought, and came to the incredible conclusion that the enticing scent wasn’t coming from her… it was coming from the bared sex in front of her.

Emma couldn’t help it, a predatory grin formed on her usually innocent features. That smile interrupted Regina’s musings on how Emma’s pink lips would taste. With badly hidden bewilderment she asked “what is that smile about, _girl_?”

Due to the arousal now completely clouding her mind Emma didn’t think before she answered “it smells absolutely heavenly” in a thick, low voice.

Regina felt her entire body stiffen as she immediately understood what the girl could smell. She considered her options on what to do now and realised that she either shut the girl down with cruel words and a punishment or she took the game one step further and made the girl loose her footing again.

The second option seemed like the one that would continue to keep that wretched restlessness at bay and so she brought the finger resting under Emma’s chin up to the pink lips and purred “if you like the scent, you should experience the _taste_ , my dear” in a low, husky voice that nearly drove Emma mad with desire.

Emma could hear her blood thundering in her ears and even she noticed how shallow her breathing was now. Regina gave her a large smile and it made Emma stop breathing at all for a few seconds until the Queen whispered “breathe” and Emma obeyed.

Regina stood up and looked at the flushed girl who looked ready to pass out. She decided that she shouldn’t take the game any further, there would be plenty of time for that tomorrow night and all the following evenings when the blonde would be undressing her. Not to mention every morning when the procedure would have to be reversed.

“That will do. We aren’t getting anywhere with you drooling over me like that. I’ll remove my corset and boots on my own and leave my hair up. I know that my lover likes it up and I can always take my hair down with magic when I am finished with him. You’re dismissed. I will call for you in the morning” the Queen commanded as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened.

Emma tried to get up and leave but her dizziness was getting worse and she stumbled halfway up, colliding her body with the Queen’s.

Regina grabbed the girl’s upper arms to steady her and muttered “careful, you clumsy wench” but there was no real malice in her voice. As she held Emma’s upper arms she gave an amused chuckle and added “my, seems that we have some nice muscles under that dress. I’ll have to inspect them further one day.”

Emma blushed even more furiously and made a mental note to ask for more physical labour to keep her strength up. She mumbled a thank you, picked up the dress to have it cleaned off and headed for the door quickly. When Regina was sure that the girl had left she looked down at her nearly naked body and with a flick of her wrist she magically removed the corset and the boots.

After all, she only wanted to be undressed by servants so that she could let her mind wander before bed and save her magic. Then there was the fact that royalty were expected to do these things, of course. Regina might have rid herself of most royal rituals but even she knew that some had to be kept to keep the peasants in check.

As she was now naked she wondered if she should take her hair down as well but she decided not to. The Green Knight did actually like it up, he had said as much when they had snuck away for a brief encounter on a balcony at her last name-day feast. Besides, the way that the girl had arranged her hair was surprisingly comfortable and lacked the migraine inducing tension that these coiffures usually had. 

That girl, Emma was it? That girl was a delight. A virgin and yet so… alluring and clearly with such capacity for arousal. If the girl hadn’t been a servant in her castle Regina might have ignored her usual preference for men and ravaged the young girl. Or well, no, ravaged was the wrong word.

Regina knew every well what it was like to be ravaged by someone older when it was time to loose one’s virginity, and she would never do that to someone else. Especially not someone as interesting as the creature who had just sat by her feet with a feral grin as she enjoyed the scent of her Queen’s arousal.

Regina let a finger slide through her wet folds and was amazed at how much moisture had gathered there in such a short time. The blonde had done well, then she corrected herself, _Emma_ had done well. Regina wondered if the wench was going to arouse her every night. If that was the case she might just loose her composure and gently ease the lovely creature out of being untouched. And _then_ ravage her.


	15. Chapter 15

Emma had left the Queen’s bedchambers and was now heading for the stairs to take the dress down to the maids who would rinse it out.

However, she had only gotten two steps down when Agnes ran over with as quiet steps as she could manage. Right on her heels was Billy, who in Emma’s mind seemed to be the person who worked the least in the castle.

“How did it go?” Agnes asked in an urgent whisper.

Emma frowned and tried to extrapolate that information from her frazzled brain. “I… I... think it went ok.”

“Well we didn’t hear shouting and you don’t seem to have been turned into a crab so I would say you did well!” Agnes replied with a proud grin.

“A crab? Why a crab?” Billy asked quietly behind Agnes but he was ignored by both women.

“No, she didn’t shout, even though I got the order of the undressing all wrong. I’m not sure, but I think she _made me_ get it wrong. I think she was… toying with me” Emma pondered.

“Really? Well it wouldn’t surprise me. She likes playing games with people’s minds” Agnes whispered with a shrug.

“I mean I would get if it was a toad or a rat. Everyone has heard about people being turned into those by magic. In fact my uncle became a rat. But a crab? I just don’t see it.” Billy continued and was still ignored. 

Emma shook her head slowly as she wasn’t sure that playing with her _mind_ was all the Queen had wanted to do. Then she mumbled “anyway, she dismissed me early because she is expecting a visitor, or a lover as she put it.”

Agnes nodded knowingly and whispered “I bet it’s the Green Knight, he’s her favourite right now. Mind you, she doesn’t seem quite happy with him. She has thrown him out and shouted things after him a few times now. Last time that happened, Billy here, being a disgusting cabbage-brain, said _there’s the Queen with her d_ _ew-drenched blossom ready for pollinating but the eager bee about to sink his stinger in can’t create the right buzz and so her honey stops flowing._ Honestly, boys are vile!”

Agnes took a second to stare angrily at the clueless Billy while Emma just looked down at her feet while thinking over this new information.

Billy filled the silence by muttering “I mean, we don’t even live by the sea. And I don’t think the Queen eats a lot of seafood… so why a crab?”

“Oh would you shut up about the crab, Billy! It’s bad enough that I never got round to mending that collar on the blue dress because you… kept me busy.” Agnes snarled quietly and then blushed crimson.

Emma looked from Billy to Agnes and slowly said “exactly what did you two get up to while I was in there?”

Billy smiled shyly at Emma and whispered “I got my first kiss, didn’t I? Agnes has kissed a boy before but tonight was my first time. Her lips are so soft I could die!”

Emma looked at the overjoyed expression on Billy’s elfin face and smiled back until she turned and saw the horror on Agnes’ features. The young girl was looking behind Emma.

Slowly and carefully, as not to drag the dress on the floor, Emma turned around and saw Mrs Cox standing three steps below.

Emma had no idea how the old woman had sneaked up on them without anyone hearing her but there she was and her face looked frozen in between a look of disgust and one of fury. Emma could hear the scarping of Agnes shoes as the young woman backed up from the stairs and she could hear Billy’s frightened, tiny breaths.

Their fear angered Emma, the anger wasn’t aimed at her two new friends but at the clearly unnecessarily cruel woman on the stairs.

Emma straightened her back and spoke. “Good evening, Mrs Cox. I have just prepared the Queen for sleep and I’m now taking this dress down to the downstairs-maids.”

Slowly and with determined steps the older woman advanced on Emma and the two young people skulking at the top of the stairs. “That is satisfactory, Emma Swan, but right now I am more interested in what has been going on between a footman and a maid behind closed doors tonight. We all know that there is no _fraternizing_ allowed in this workforce.”

Mrs Cox walked past Emma and up to Agnes and Billy. Emma bunched up the dress in her arms and took the two steps up to stand with the others.

“I’m… I’m so sorry Mrs Cox. We didn’t mean for anything to happen” Agnes stuttered.

Billy stepped close to the young girl but made sure that they were in no way touching as he said “that’s right. It was just a quick brush of the lips and then we stopped the fraternizing and came out here to resume our duties. Agnes was checking on Emma and I was going downstairs.”

Mrs Cox squinted her eyes at him as if she was trying to x-ray his skull and hissed “liar! I can smell the sin on the two of you from a mile away.”

Both Agnes and Billy paled and seemed to stop breathing but they didn’t defend themselves. Emma felt that this task would have to fall on her now.

She held her hand out towards Mrs Cox and tried for a neutral tone of voice as she said “look, I wasn’t gone for that long so not a lot could have happened. And Billy is right, they did just come out here to resume working. You’ve warned them not to fraternize now and I’m sure they’ll listen. Let’s all get back to work.”

“You blonde idiot! Unless you were gone for less than one minute they could have gotten up to large amounts of sinning in that room. Now, please stay out of this or you will share their punishment” Mrs Cox hissed at Emma.

As the woman turned back to Agnes and Billy her voice had taken on an icy quality. “You two will sleep on the floor in the hall for the following week. Billy, you will be outside of your supervisor’s quarters and you, Agnes Coulter, will sleep outside of mine. I will check on you and if I find you sneaking back into a bed or fetching a blanket, I will personally give you thirty raps over the knuckles each. In addition to this, neither of you will have breakfast nor supper for the following week.”

Emma sighed with frustration and despite knowing that she should stay quiet she murmured “how do you expect them to work if they don’t eat?”

Emma could hear the increased panic in both Agnes’ and Billy’s breathing after her comment.

Mrs Cox stared at her and very deliberately snarled “they will have their mid-day meal and it will have to sustain them until they learn to keep their filthy lusts under control. You are questioning me too much, _girl_. No breakfast or supper for you either. However, you may sleep in your bed. Unless you have anything else to say?”

Agnes and Billy both shook their heads emphatically and gave Emma pleading looks. Emma muttered “no” and avoided eye contact, knowing every well that if she looked into the older woman’s icy stare she would say something worse.   

They all turned to look down the stairs as they heard heavy steps approaching. They could also hear whistling and Emma heard Mrs Cox mutter “the Green Knight” under her breath.

Coming up the stairs in jaunty steps was a handsome man with a cocky grin, for some reason Emma felt an urge to reach her leg out and trip him up as he went passed with nothing but a disdainful glance at them.

He approached the doors to the Queen’s chambers and loudly rapped on the aged wood. He was met with only silence and so he knocked again. There was still no response and Emma couldn’t help but smirk at how crestfallen the peacock-ish man suddenly looked. Then the doors finally flew open and the Green Knight strode in and closed the doors behind him. 

Mrs Cox gave a derisive sniff as she looked after him and then turned to the three young people before her and coldly stated “it’s time to get back to work and then to sleep” before turning to soundlessly descend the stairs.

Emma shot Agnes and Billy a pitying look and then followed Mrs Cox downstairs to drop off the dress. When she was almost downstairs she heard Billy’s dejected steps behind her and a sad little voice saying “well, I still don’t get the crab thing.”

 


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note:   
> Spoiler and Warning … now some of you lamented that there was no Regina in the last chapter so here is one that is basically all Regina. The bad news is that she is with the Green Knight. The good news is that Emma shows up at the end. (And the next chapter will be just Emma and Regina in the same room.)

The Queen leisurely pulled the covers over her nakedness to keep warm. The Green Knight had just walked in and now stood before her with that annoyingly smug grin he always wore. He wasn’t wearing any armour, just chainmail and green leather, which he was currently removing while keeping eye contact with his Queen.

Neither of them had spoken a single word so far but that was how Regina wanted it, if he spoke he only annoyed her more. Soon he was naked and she looked him up and down and remembered why she kept him around, the young man certainly had an incredible physique.

Regina felt a tingle of her earlier arousal as she felt his hungry stares on her form under the covers, she let the duvet slide down a bit so her breasts were shown to the clearly aroused knight and watched his manhood show its appreciation.

This was where she usually became the most aroused, when she saw how her suitors desired her she felt her own desire flame up. But now it refused to stir to much more than a slight smoulder.

Still she beckoned the muscled man to her bed with a gesture of her hand and he immediately obeyed. She removed the covers completely and enjoyed the groan of pleasure that emanated from the man when he saw her body.

A small voice in her mind kept whispering to her, she tried to ignore it, but as she laid there with this eager man just waiting for her confirmation to begin to worship her body, the voice grew louder.

It kept pointing out that the arousal she felt now was a mere shadow to the arousal she had felt when the blonde girl had undressed her. It also pointed out that the particular brand of arousal she had felt then was different from her normal kind. It wasn’t just the arousal of seeing herself through the eyes of someone who desired her, it was her just simply desiring someone else.

She banished the little voice’s reason by pointing out to herself that it was just the newness of the maid that was arousing her. That and the forbidden nature of the desire between the two women of course.

Still, Regina had to admit that just thinking about the girl had created a new little wave of wetness between her slender thighs. Wetness that would come in handy when she would soon mount the Green Knight’s erection.

Suddenly she decided to skip the kisses and caresses of her body that she usually insisted that her lovers gave her. She growled “on your back” and the Green Knight laid down next to her with that same smug grin.

The Queen straddled his muscular midriff and raised herself to get into position to ride the well-sculpted airhead below her. Suddenly she found that his smug grin annoyed her more than usually and she closed her eyes as she found his hardness and guided herself down on it.

As she rode him her face didn’t lose its annoyed frown. His eyes were glued to her breasts and so he didn’t notice until she grunted “I didn’t send for you just to lay there, if that was the case I might as well have asked for a wooden puppet with a well-carved cock. At least make yourself useful, rub my pearl.”

He immediately slid his thick fingers through her black curls and into the wetness below. His fingers grazed his own erection and he grinned as he felt Regina’s wetness on it just before she descended all the way down to the root of it again and obscured the phallus. The Queen was losing her patience and sighed “are you even looking for it, you vain man-whore?”

He looked up at her as if he was about to protest but when he saw the fury in her eyes he closed his mouth and began to feel through the folds for the Queen’s hard nub. He finally located it and began to rub right on it. It was too hard and too direct and Regina sighed as she guided his big fingers so that they rubbed her clitoral hood over the clit in a pleasant way instead.

Soon he got the gist and began to make soft little circles on the pleasure centre as it rose and fell in front of him. Regina closed her eyes again and was finally finding a pleasurable rhythm for the riding. She felt that she was just about to come as the Green Knight stopped the rubbing of her clit and instead grabbed her breasts hard with both hands and screamed “feel my fealty flowing into you, my Queen” before screaming his head off.

For a moment the Queen considered having him garrotted before she remembered that she had lost the stomach for death sentences. Instead she quickly got off him, stood up and put her hands on her hips and as soon as he had started breathing properly again she intoned “leave. Now.”

Desperately out of breath he panted “but my Queen. You have not finished… don’t you wish to ride my mouth or my fingers until you climax?”

The Queen gave him a look as if he was a cockroach who had just asked her to marry it. “No. I don’t really see a point in putting myself through that. I can satisfy myself quicker and better anyway. Be gone.”

The Green Knight heard the threat that was unsaid but so very close to being spoken and he dragged himself out of bed and onto his feet. He gathered up his clothes and put his britches and shirt on before leaving to put the rest of the clothes on outside. He knew it was best to spend as little time as possible in the Queen’s company when she was in this mood.

As soon as he was gone the Queen looked down at her sex and grimaced when she saw the leavings of the Green Knight. She waved her hand and the odious man’s essence was gone from both her inside and her outside.

She laid down with the intentions of satisfying herself but soon she found herself just lying there with her hand cupping her sex while she listened to the rain that was still battering down as if it was never going to end. That incessant restlessness was still occupying her chest and her mind. She needed distraction.

Regina got up and slid a simple black shift over her naked body. As she did, it caught on one of the pins that was still in her hair and as she tugged the shift down a small portion of her hair fell down.

She placed the straying hairs behind her ear with an irritated gesture. She would magic her hair down when she returned to the room, right now she just wanted to get away from the bed that stank of sex and the walls closing in on her. 

As Regina began to pace the chilly but pleasantly quiet corridor she walked straight into someone. She looked up and saw Emma, dressed only in a white shift which looked exactly like Regina’s but the opposite colour.

Even in the dark of the corridor Regina could see the panicked look in the sea-green eyes that met hers and it stabbed her heart like a pinprick.  


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you for all the lovely comments, they really make me want to write! I will try to get around to answering some of them later today. I'm sorry about the Green Knight making all of us wince, but the scene was important for the story so it had to be done. This chapter however, will be all Emma and Regina. (Keep in mind that I said this story will be slowburn, it would be out of character to have them just jump in to bed and then get married at this point. )

 

Emma had been roaming the halls after she was meant to be asleep. She had snuck up to see Agnes who was on the far end of the corridor, sleeping outside Mrs Cox's bedchamber, and checked that the girl was as comfortable as she could be on the cold stones.

She had given Agnes a second shift to put on to ward off a little more of the cold without Mrs Cox noticing. It was all she could do without getting the girl into further trouble.

She and Agnes whispered about a plan to steal some apples from one of the many apple trees out in the castle grounds to make up for the lack of food for the upcoming week and then she had left the poor young thing shivering on the floor with an ache in her heart.

There were no words for how badly Emma wanted to give Mrs Cox a piece of her mind and it was that frustration which was driving Emma to pace the corridor now instead of sleeping.

But now she had walked straight into the Queen. The Queen dressed only in a thin, back shift. The Queen with her hair slightly messed up and a sad expression on her beautiful features.

For a moment neither of them spoke. Emma was busy trying to figure out an excuse for being up while she examined the vulnerable look in the brown eyes of the Queen. Regina on the other hand was trying to decide whether she should shout at the girl and discipline her to stop the maid from seeing her in this state or if she should make use of Emma's company to calm herself.

As she saw the blonde's gaze fixate on the portion of fallen hair that Regina had put behind her ear, the Queen decided on the latter. In a voice that clearly stated that this situation was normal and should not be questioned the Queen said "there you are. Good, you may take my hair down now."

Then the impressive woman turned gracefully and headed back to her chambers. As Emma followed her she noticed that when the Queen wasn't wearing her heels she was actually a little bit shorter than Emma.

This was of course of absolutely no consequence, but it still made Emma feel a tiny smidgen more confident at that moment. At least there was one thing in this world where she was superior to the Queen, even if it was just physical height.

They entered the room and Regina assertively sat down on a chair and ordered "begin". Emma walked over and instantly began to undo the complicated hairdo. Regina felt herself take the first full breath since the Green Knight had left as Emma's hands busied themselves in her hair.

Soon the only sounds that could be heard was the ceaseless pounding of rain on the room's windows and the sounds made by Emma dropping the many small pins on the vanity table next to Regina as they came out of the luscious brown hair.

It was a comfortable silence and they were both enjoying the peaceful atmosphere and the fact that the taking down of Regina's hair gave them both something useful to do.

Regina closed her eyes and took another deep breath as she felt thankful that she hadn't taken her hair down with magic, this was so much more soothing. The slender and gentle fingers releasing her hair from the pins and smoothing it down into its usual mane of luscious hair felt comforting somehow.

When Emma went to smooth down a portion of hair below Regina's ear the hair shot upwards in a curl, regaining the shape it had when it was up. This meant that as Emma went to smooth it down all her hands ended up touching was a portion of the Queen's neck.

She froze. Her fingers had just caressed the Queen's skin, and on such a sensitive spot on her neck as well! Emma's heart began to pound nervously as she panicked over what to do. Should she pretend it didn't happen? Maybe the Queen hadn't noticed? No, of course she had. Emma realised she had to apologize.

"I'm sorry, your Majesty. The hair moved" she whispered hoarsely.

Because Emma's couldn't see her face, Regina allowed herself to smile and bite her lip at how cute the girl was when she panicked, before replying.

"That's quite alright, dear. If you had been trying to  _fondle me_ , I am sure you would have aimed a little lower" Regina purred.

Emma wondered what she meant and looked lower just to discover that from her angle she could look down into the black shift and see the Queen's cleavage. When she realised that Emma drew her breath in so loudly that Regina felt it on the top of her scalp, and once again the older woman had to smile.

Emma swallowed hard and with now slightly trembling hands she returned to taking the few remaining pins out of Regina's hair. The Queen sat still and thought about those soft fingers that were just on her neck and the sweetness of the girl. She had to make the accident happen again.

So as Emma busied herself with smoothing down Regina's hair at the back of her neck, Regina discreetly waved her hand and made the hair move away to expose her neck just as Emma's hand touched her.

Emma drew her hand away as if it had been burnt and once again stammered "I'm… I'm sorry, your Grace. The hair moved again."

Regina was once again biting her lip and smiling at the touch and the girl's insecurity. This game was as delicious as the soft touches of the girl's fingers. Regina realised that Emma had stopped and intended to stay that way until she got a reply.

"Not a problem, dear. You are not the first person to be unable to keep your hands off me" the Queen teased without realising that Emma was completely unaccustomed to flirting and so would not know how to respond.

When the Queen noticed that Emma still wasn't returning to the task of removing the pins she turned her head to look at the girl and found the blonde frowning. Clearly Emma had not taken well to the implication that she had caressed Regina intentionally. That fire was back in the sea-green eyes and Regina felt her chest swell with almost pride as she saw it.

Regina dipped her head in acknowledgement and uncharacteristically apologized. "I am sorry if my joke offended you, I know that you didn't touch me on purpose. Finish your task and I will let you go back to bed."

With a visible lowering of her shoulders the blonde relaxed. Emma then shook her head and mumbled "I can't" before continuing to remove the last two pins.

The Queen gave a low, throaty laugh. "Why ever not?"

"Because I doubt Agnes is getting much sleep" Emma murmured as she put the last pin down on the table and picked up a comb to comb the long coffee-coloured hair.

"How is that relevant to you? And why is Agnes Coulter not sleeping? Don't tell me it is because of her insipid fear of me" the Queen drawled in a bored tone.

"No, your Majesty. It's the fact that Mrs Cox is making her sleep on the cold floor outside her chambers" Emma replied with venom as she combed Regina's thick, lush tresses.

Regina gave a dubious laugh and asked "why is she doing that? If Mrs Cox wanted something to warm the floors outside her door she could have asked for a pelt."

Emma gave an angered huff which went in stark contrast with how she gently ran her fingers through Regina's hair to smooth it before continuing the combing with the ivory comb. "It's a punishment, your Grace" Emma finally replied through gritted teeth.

Regina turned and looked searchingly at Emma's incensed face before thoughtfully commanding "tell me exactly what happened and I will judge whether or not young Agnes should remain on that floor."


	18. Chapter 18

The Queen's steps echoed in the hallway as she charged towards Mrs Cox's door. She was furious, but sadly not at the woman she was heading to meet. She was furious at herself. She cursed the weakness she had acquired during the last 25 years. She cursed her sudden conscience which seemed to take root in her hardened heart after Henric had killed Snow White and Prince Charming.

As the thoughts stormed through her mind she found herself grinding her teeth and wondering what she would have done if the by now dearly departed knight had come into her room today and given her the news he had that fateful night. Would she have been as happy now or would this slowly evolving conscience of hers have made her  _and_  Henric pay for Snow's death?

The reason Regina was berating her weakness was that she had listened to the new maid who told her about Mrs Cox's punishment of Agnes. She was getting involved with what the  _domestics_  were doing, it was undignified! Mrs Cox always got the job done, she did what was necessary and that was why Regina kept her on. But here she was, going to Mrs Cox to ask her to re-consider.

And for what? So that a useless, pitiful and mousy little maid could get her thrills with some footman? No, of course that wasn't why she was doing this. She was doing this because she had looked too deep into those damn sea-green eyes.

Regina was doing this because she had spent 25 years feeling lonely and wanting someone to look after. Yes, surely that was it? She was seeing Emma as someone she could care for, like a child. That was all it was, Regina reasoned. But then that wouldn't explain the arousal. Nor the ache in her heart when the blonde was angry or panicked.

This was all too sudden. The girl had just started in her service, she couldn't have any kind of feelings for her. Regina promised herself that she would deal with this matter at hand and then after that she would take a step back from the beautiful maid. Emotionally if not physically.

Next time she had to fill her bed she would try a more lowborn man or maybe even a woman. Perhaps that was what this was? A need to rough it? To connect with someone else than the bloodless royals, knights and magicians that always seemed to swarm around Regina.

Maybe her weakness for the blonde was just a need for someone more down to earth, someone naïve and sweet. But it would have to be someone that wasn't in her employment.

Regina decided that she could think more about this later. For now she would talk to Mrs Cox about Agnes and then wash her hands of all of this.

Regina shook her head to clear it as her thoughts kept whirling around and she was almost at Mrs Cox's door. She just managed to see Agnes bunched up in a little ball on the floor before she stepped on the maid and glared at the girl with pursed lips.

"Get out of the way, you overgrown turnip. I need to speak to Mrs Cox" she insulted in a rather lacklustre way.

Agnes immediately scurried off to the side and basically glued her thin body to the wall. Regina looked at her disdainfully and for the millionth time wished that more people would grow a spine.

She knocked on the door in a forceful way that conveyed an annoyance at having to obey the courtesy of knocking in her own castle. Luckily for Mrs Cox, she had always been a light sleeper and was up and answering the door after one knock, had that not been the case, she would have had the less than pleasant surprise of the Queen barging into her bedchambers while she was still in bed.

"Mrs Cox. You know that I do not normally interfere with your punishment of the staff, this is because I have better things to do and because I trust your judgement. However, on this occasion I find both my maids in risk of something I cannot abide: loud, grumbling stomachs" the Queen drawled in her most indifferent tone.

Mrs Cox nervously licked her lips and tried to get her sleep addled brain to function. "Oh, I see. Well in that case I shall allow the two errant maids to have their three meals a day, your Majesty. However, I strongly suggest that we do punish these two somehow. Especially Agnes, who has broken the rule against fraternising."

Regina gave a curt nod and pondered this for a few seconds. "Of course. How about what they call manual labour? Most of the time I do only need one maid on call. What if we send the maids out to help with the planting of the new roses in my garden? Agnes can be sent out the most while Emma remains available to me here in the castle. The few times when Agnes is needed here, we can send Emma out instead" Regina finally suggested.

Mrs Cox felt this would be too lenient and she also felt that her maids should be above such low and dirty tasks, but no one wise ever disagreed when the Queen had an idea. Especially not in the middle of the night when the Queen was more likely to be irritable.

"As you wish, your Majesty. I would highly suggest that we let Agnes and Billy spend this one night on the floor as to show that we are not  _weak_ " Mrs Cox agreed gloomily.

Regina's brown eyes flared with anger at the word  _weak_  but she let it slide and just nodded her agreement. Then she stormed back towards her chambers without as much as a glance at Mrs Cox, who eventually went back to bed while musing over this strange new dislike to maids have rumbling bellies.

When Regina returned to her chambers Emma had just finished putting away all of Regina's hairpins and was now staring at the Queen's bed with a strange and almost forlorn expression.

The expression stung Regina when she saw it and this angered her further. How dare this little farm-kitten make her feel this way? How dare she make her Queen feel anything at all?

"Done. You and Agnes will do garden work as punishment instead. It's hard, sweaty labour so don't thank me, but it means you will both eat. Oh and tomorrow the little dormouse will be back in her bed" Regina snapped.

"Ok… I suppose that in an improvement. I didn't expect there to be no punishment at all. But, what about Billy, your Majesty?" Emma asked while trying hard to keep her tone deferential.

"What about him" the Queen growled and waved her hand in front of her face to remove her makeup.

"Well he… he's being punished too and the punishment is too harsh. Especially for someone who climbs those stairs as much as he does, he needs food and sleep, your Majesty" Emma muttered, now unable to keep the ferocity out of her voice.

Regina stared at her and Emma noticed that the Queen looked more approachable when she had no makeup on. However the snarl on the Queen's features removed that approachability swiftly.

"I. Am. Not. Helping. You. Any. Further. Tell Mrs Cox to relay my decision to Billy's supervisor tomorrow if you wish, but I am not getting more involved with this" Regina hissed and aggressively pulled off her shift to throw it on the floor.

Emma stared at the now naked beauty and struggled to remember how angry she was and how she was trying to argue with someone she shouldn't even be looking straight in the eye.

Averting her eyes from the beautiful olive skin and the eye-catching curves, she calmed down and realised that this arrangement would be quite fair despite poor Billy and Agnes having to spend one night on the floor. Most of all, the Queen couldn't give up anything more without damaging her authority, even Emma with her lack of understanding of social constructs understood that.

As Regina stormed into her bed and pulled the covers over her body she realised that it was a cold night and she would probably want that shift on, however there was no way she was admitting her mistake to the contrary maid in front of her. Regina had wanted a personal maid with some spirit and now she feared that she had gotten too much of a good thing.

Just then Emma picked up the shift from the floor and folded it nicely. She placed it by the Queen's bed and in warm, careful tones she said "I will leave this here, your Majesty. Just in case you get cold. This rain doesn't seem to be stopping and there is a chill on the wind that seems to seep straight through these walls."

Then the blonde bowed as low as she could and almost whispered "goodnight, my Queen. Thank you for helping Agnes, Billy and me. We are in your debt. I wish you the sweetest of dreams."

Then Emma took her leave and quietly closed the large doors behind herself. Regina felt some of the worst of the anger die away. Once again that confounded girl had altered her mood and her feelings.

Regina realised that she would have to try that trick of taking someone more suitable, but in some ways similar to Emma, into bed. Hopefully that would get rid of this problem.


	19. Chapter 19

The sun streamed into the vast room and beamed straight to the bed and on Regina's face. Still half buried in sleep she scrunched her eyes closed to block it out but it was no good, she sighed and opened her eyes while gracefully stretching.

She snarled at the bright sun and thought that while it made a nice difference from the infernal rain it was an unwelcome waking mechanism on a morning when Regina would rather have slept in. She remembered what had happened last night and decided to act straight away.

She got up realising that sometime during the chilly night she must have put that shift back on as she was now wearing it. She strode over to her mirror and muttered "mirror, mirror on the wall" in a drowsy voice.

The genie who had been trapped in the mirror ever since killing Leopold showed his face and his usually calm features seemed shocked to find the Queen only semi-dressed and without her usual make-up.

The Queen waved her hand at him and muttered "yes, I realise that I do not look my best this morning. I want to get this over with before my maid dresses me, so don't make any comments unless you wish me to take you from that mirror and trap you in a chamber pot instead."

The genie closed his mouth which had been opened to speak and gave the love of his life a curt nod. Regina pursed her lips and began speaking grudgingly.

"I need you to find me a new lover. He or she, gender doesn't matter, needs to be more lowborn than my usual conquests. They need to be blonde, have sharp but elegant features, eyes of a blue-green hue, be physically fit and healthy and a…. sort of mixture of naivety and strength in their character" she said with her head held high but her eyes avoiding eye contact.

"That is very  _specific_ , my Queen. However finding someone with that personality will take a lot of time. I don't see into people's heart and minds so I would have to observe their actions to judge if they…"

"Very well" the Queen interrupted in annoyance. "Just find someone with the right physical characteristics."

"I see. Might I ask what you mean by lowborn? Would my Queen like a buxom milk maid to frolic with?" The genie asked with badly masked jealousy.

The Queen gave him a glare which could have singed his skin to ashes if he had not been inside a mirror and then hissed "you know very well that it would have to be someone more worthy of my body and time than that… If I wanted a maid I could have just…" she trailed off as she realised that she was about to give the genie too much information.

She resumed with more calm. "It has to be someone above the status of a servant or farmer but below nobility. Understood?"

"Yes, your Majesty. I will start looking right away" the Genie promised and faded away to leave Regina looking at her own reflection.

Regina stared at herself and saw that her hair was in an awful disarray. She was going to ring for the maid but then realised that it must still be very early.

Usually Regina woke when she heard that all the servants were bustling around the castle getting their morning chores done but now she could hear only slight noises and they sounded more like people waking and getting up to wash and get dressed for the day.

Suddenly Regina smiled as she realised that this meant that Emma might not be awake yet and that Agnes would still be sleeping on the floor and not in their room. The Queen's grin grew feral as she considered walking into the small room and disturbing the beautiful girl as she slept or perhaps even as she dressed.

Of course, it would technically be wrong to see the maid undressed, despite Emma having seen her fully naked a couple of times now. It would be wrong as it would embarrass the girl but also because it would probably fuel her own strange attraction to the blonde creature.

But then she mused that she was dealing with the problem of her attraction through the genie's searches and when it came to the girl's embarrassment… well, Emma got to see her naked so why shouldn't the shoe be on the other foot this one time? It would also be a revenge of sorts for how Emma had made her feel last night, like she was at the girl's beck and call and not the other way around.

With a smirk she waved her hand before her face to put her make-up on and smooth her hair down. She didn't get dressed or put her hair up as she still wanted the girl to do her job, that was after all what she was there for.

The Queen cracked her fingers and wrists in the same way she often did before using magic and with confident steps she walked out of her bedchambers and into the corridor.

A passing footman, who was only half dressed, nearly ran into her and jumped with fright when he realised that the Queen was awake but not dressed or served her breakfast yet. She dismissed him and his concerns with a hand gesture and crossed to the small door leading to the two upstairs maids room.

Without knocking or giving any warning of her approach she tore open the door and walked in. At first she couldn't tell if she was relieved or disappointed not to find the young blonde getting dressed, she wanted to see Emma's body but she realised that she wanted the girl to show it to her willingly.

Emma was still in her bed and Regina's arrival woke her. To tell the honest truth, Emma wasn't great at waking up by herself. In the castle she grew up in she had been woken by the maid or an impatient fairy wanting to teach her a new cross-stitch or how to bake cupcakes for her future husband, here in Regina's castle she had Agnes to wake her.

But now she was jolted awake by the beautiful brunette who, in an echo of last night, had haunted her dreams with disappointed looks and sexy naked curves. She sat up in shock and wondered if she had slept through the Queen ringing the bell to get her to dress her.

Regina was watching her raptly and taking in the sleep-tousled hair, the pale skin which almost glowed in the bright sunlight, the crumpled shift which fell off one of Emma's toned shoulders as the girl sat up and the way the young woman blinked her stunning green eyes to rid them of sleep. She looked ravishing and suddenly Regina felt that this little surprise visit might have been a bad idea.

The Queen quickly composed herself and to cover up her uneasiness and the fact that she didn't know what to say about that she was there to spy on Emma, she growled "my bell doesn't seem to be functioning properly. Make yourself presentable and then come dress me."

Emma mumbled "of course, your Majesty. I'll be there as soon as I can" and Regina felt the slightest hint of a shiver when she heard the sleep-hoarse voice in which the blonde spoke.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: I realise that I am taking some liberties with the layout of Regina's castle (despite the brilliant efforts of BeeGoddess who has been posting pics from the FTL period on Tumblr) for the sake of the story and I apologize if this annoys anyone. My only excuse is that it is 25 years later than what we saw in the show so changes can have been made and let's face it… even the OUAT creators don't always go for consistency. Thank you for your lovely reviews/comments!

After the quickest getting ready process of Emma's life she knocked on the Queen's doors and was allowed in. Regina had chosen a dress while Emma got ready and was now surveying the black dress with a high collar and a corset to be worn on the outside that laid on her bed.

While waiting for the Queen to deign to look her way, Emma glanced at the bell with which the Queen should have summoned her.  _Strange_ , Emma mused, it doesn't  _look_ broken.

"I think I'll wear the high boots underneath the dress today. It is a sunny day but I fear it will still be cold" Regina deliberated, more to herself than to Emma.

Emma went to the side door leading to the royal wardrobe and picked up a pair of high, lace up, black boots and carried them in until she was next to Regina. She held them up to get confirmation that these were the ones the Queen had wanted.

"Yes, those should keep me warm enough. By the way, I need my chambers cleaned this morning, I can actually see dust in certain places, so Agnes will be needed here. This means that you will take the first punishment shift out in the gardens" Regina said without a glance at Emma.

As Emma put the boots down and assisted the Queen in lifting the black shift over her head and placing it by the bed she simply said "of course, your Majesty. May I… may I ask Mrs Cox or the head gardener for men's garb? I'm pretty sure I will be of no use in this dress."

Emma had been wanting to plead her case for men's clothes further but once again her brain short-circuited as the Queen was now naked before her. Emma's hungry and badly hidden looks weren't lost on the Queen who felt a smile forming on her magically reddened lips.

"You may, but I doubt you will get your wish granted from either of them. They are both very old-fashioned and would rather die than dress a woman as a man. In fact I see Mrs Cox frown every time she sees me in riding attire, just like my mother she does not believe it ladylike to wear anything practical" Regina replied with a tone of bitterness.

Emma wondered where the Queen's mother was, before she had simply assumed that she had died as the Queen's father was so old. But from what the Queen just said Emma gathered that this could not be the case. She picked up the dress and began to fasten it to the Queen's shapely body, lamenting the covering up of all that soft-looking golden skin.

As Emma dressed her, Regina thought about Emma in a man's clothes and smiled, that would be an interesting sight. Tight trousers which showed Emma's legs under the thin fabric and a snug linen shirt to show off the shape of the blonde's waist and breasts seemed like a very good idea to the Queen.

As soon as the dress was on and Emma prepared to arrange the Queen's hair, Regina turned to Emma and cooed "it pains me to think of you working in that dress, getting caught on things and having your movements restricted. Would you like me to magic up an outfit for you? Then if Mrs Cox or Hollins, the head gardener, complains you can say that you wear them on my orders as part of your punishment."

"You would do that for me, your Majesty? Yes please, it would make the work so much simpler" Emma said with her usual beaming smile and began to braid the Queen's hair.

Regina admired the smile as she considered dressing Emma with magic but she decided that she wanted to avoid having to explain her reasons for having someone dress her when she could just do it by magic. Instead she waited for Emma to finish the braid and pin it up in an elaborate bun, before she magicked the clothes unto the bed and gestured to them as she said "go ahead."

Emma looked at the tight treacle-coloured trousers and the grey linen shirt and mumbled "you want me to dress here? In front of you, your Majesty?"

"Why not? You have seen  _me_  undressed after all" Regina replied with a challenging look.

Regina expected Emma to balk at this idea because she hadn't, as Agnes had, been introduced to Emma's lack of shyness when it came to her body. Emma just shrugged and began to unlace the front of her simple servants dress. When it was unlaced she pulled it over her head and threw it on the bed, soon the same thing happened to her shift and now Emma was stark naked.

Regina decided to stare quite unabashed. After all… this was her room, her castle, her newly created clothes and  _her maid_. She looked Emma up and down, taking in the long legs ending in shapely hips and crowned with dark blonde curls between her thighs.

At this point Emma turned to start to dress and as the Queen hadn't moved up to the top of Emma's body she breathed "wait". Emma stopped and looked at the Queen, up to that point she had been oblivious of the Queen's objectification but now she saw the ravenous look that the Queen was giving her. She smirked and couldn't help herself, she put the trousers she had just picked up back down and stood in front of the Queen, wearing only a cocky grin and her hands on her hips, to provide a full view she even parted her legs a bit.

Emma Swan might be shy about many things but her body wasn't one of them. The fairies had cured her from that simply by stressing just how much she  _should_  be embarrassed by it and then never allowing her to see anyone who could possibly want to see this apparently shameful nakedness.

The Queen realised that she should be put off by the maid's brash behaviour and she probably ought to punish the uncouth girl, but she was enjoying the girl's display and bold actions too much to do anything but give a exultant chuckle and continue to peruse the beautiful body in front of her.

As if she was surveying a piece of art she might purchase, she ran her eyes over Emma's slender stomach and her pert breasts with a pair of rosey-pink nipples which were clearly growing taut as Regina watched them.

This hardening of the little nubs made Emma uneasy, as usual she felt confused and worried when she felt arousal. Emma wondered if it was normal to feel arousal when someone was looking at your body or was it the fact that it was the Queen who was looking at her that made her nipples harden and caused that strange pull in her abdomen?

Regina gazed up from the petite, firm breasts up to the other woman's clavicles and then her strong shoulders before reaching the face and seeing the discomfort there. When she saw that insecure look, Regina assumed that she had made the girl feel ashamed with her objectification and she hastily murmured "hurry up and get dressed, I have important matters to see to elsewhere."

Emma didn't mention that the Queen could leave at any time, she was too confused by how her body was reacting and just got on with getting dressed.

Soon the linen shirt was in place and the trousers were on, as Emma did up the laces on the front of the long-legged britches she noticed that the Queen was still looking away as if to give her privacy. Clearly the older woman was hiding it, pretending to be very interested in the hem of her sleeve, but it was clear that she was doing it for Emma's sake.

Once again Emma found herself surprised at the Queen's empathy which under all that bitterness, cruelty and bravado shone through like a beacon. She wondered why no one else seemed to see it.

All of a sudden Regina seemed to realise that she didn't have to be here for this. She stood up straight and in her most regal voice pointed out that she had to attend a council with her advisors regarding some commotion in a nearing castle.

This was of course to discuss the fact that informers had conveyed that the fairies, and the villagers whom had been most loyal to Snow White, had searched the local area and where now working under the assumption that someone had either killed or kidnapped the missing princess. It was only a matter of time until they worked up the bravery to openly accuse Regina of snatching up the contender to the throne.

As the Queen left to go to her meeting, Emma tried to mentally prepare herself for her manual labour punishment and most of all working for a man that the Queen had described as very old-fashioned.  _Well, this should be fun_ , Emma thought to herself as she took a deep breath and headed for the gardens.


	21. Chapter 21

Regina felt like the meeting was taking forever. Her personal advisors and the commander of her army kept arguing about whether they should meet the fairies with brutal force or diplomacy.

Usually the Queen gave them their orders long before they could get to this level of squabbling but today she was distracted. She couldn't keep the strange look on Emma's face out of her mind, that look that the girl suddenly got when she went from smugly showing off her delicious body to staring at Regina as if she was a dangerous predator.

She shook her head and reminded herself that she was probably projecting her worries unto the maid. She didn't actually know what brought about the change in Emma's demeanour and anyway, it shouldn't matter, the girl was only a servant. A servant whom Regina knew nothing about and that was how it was going to stay.

But still, the window facing the garden beckoned to her. As she heard the commander bark that he could "kill off a bunch of fairies a lot faster than talk sense into them" Regina gave up fighting the urge and went to the window she knew would give her a view to the newly created rose garden.

Out in the sunny and chilly garden she could see the empty flower beds and the several young gardeners carrying rose bushes and manure, after some searching she saw a familiar face looking up at the castle. Sadly it was only the footman, Billy. She grimaced and her eyes continued scouring the moving figures, looking for a female form and a head of blonde hair.

Suddenly a smaller figure walked into the garden, pushing a wheelbarrow which was filled to the brim with dirt or possibly manure. Regina squinted and could make out the beautiful face scrunched up in effort, the light grey linen shirt which now had its sleeves rolled up was stained with sweat and Regina could just barely make out how hard the girl's arms were working as the muscles played under a layer of glistening sweat.

Then she saw Emma dump her heavy load into an unfilled flower bed and then kneel to smooth out the dark substance with her petite but strong hands. Next to Emma, Hollins the head gardener, appeared and seemed to be shouting at the blonde while pointing towards the sundial. Regina wondered if he was shouting about Emma's timekeeping or if he was saying that she should have filled the flowerbed behind the ornate sundial instead.

Either way she saw Emma stand up quickly as if to punch the man and she could see Emma's hands ball into fists by her sides. Regina grinned as she could almost see the steam coming off the incensed young woman. However, Emma clearly stopped herself before she did something rash as Regina saw her answer the old man and then curtsey, Hollins nodded at her and walked off in large, forceful steps.

When he had walked a few paces off, Regina saw Emma make a rude hand gesture after the man, it made the young gardener next to her laugh and even Regina, up in her window, had to bite her cheek to keep from chuckling. That girl was something else.

"…wouldn't you say, your Majesty?" A voice suddenly woke Regina from her reverie.

"Pardon" she replied in a voice which intimated that she wasn't at all sorry for not listening.

"I said that we should wait until the Blue fairy comes knocking before decided on our course of action, but we should be ready to fight if needed" the commander of her army repeated.

"Yes, yes of course, by all means prepare my forces. But I doubt it will come to that, I haven't stolen their little princess, if I wanted Snow White's offspring dead I would have come after her a long time ago but after all, a spoilt, weak little brat with blue blood is no threat to me. If they come barging in here to find her they can search every dungeon in the castle and then be on their merry way. The girl has probably been eaten by wolves anyway" she concluded in a uninterested voice and looked back out into the garden.

 

* * *

 

 

When Emma came back into the castle, finally having been dismissed by the surly Hollins, her muscles were aching. It had felt good to move again and to feel the blood pumping through her as she worked, but now she was exhausted and felt like she stank of manure.

She found Agnes in their room, sweeping the small expanse of floor meticulously. Emma stopped the girl from asking how the day had been by simply saying "I need a bath, is there any water in the tub?"

Agnes bit her lip and thought about it. "Well, I think there might be but I am not sure how warm it is anymore."

"I don't care, I just need to get clean" Emma groaned and rubbed her sore shoulders.

"Yes, I'm afraid you do. After the Queen came back from her meeting she told Mrs Cox that she wanted you to serve her at dinner instead of the regular footmen" Agnes said in an apologetic tone.

"Ah! Really?! Why?" Emma replied in agitated whine.

Agnes shrugged. "The Queen doesn't unusually give reasons. She said she wanted just you to serve her and her father at dinner tonight and that was that. So you best be clean, you know how she feels about people who don't smell nice and right now you smell like pigs dung. If I were you, I'd steal some of the Queen's cleaning powder. Just take a few grains and she won't notice."

Emma threw her arms out in a frustrated gesture and nodded wearily. She picked up her bottle of rose petal oil from her old bag and a clean dress, shift and pair of shoes before heading for the bathroom.

Twenty-five minutes later she was ready to work again. Her bath had been lukewarm but at least the five grains of cleaning powder she had stolen had fizzed through the water and made her clean enough. She had put generous amounts of her rose petal oil on just in case though, she couldn't stand the idea of smelling bad in front of the Queen.

Now Emma was waiting for the call to come and serve the Queen and her father. Agnes had snuck down to the kitchens and stolen one of the apples that was meant to be used for the apple pie tonight and given it to Emma and she was now munching away at it to gain some energy.

Billy appeared at the door, he and Emma had become much friendlier after spending the day together out in the garden and so she was really glad to see him and vice versa.

"Hi Emma, hey Agnes! Emma, the Queen is ready for her dinner now and the food has been placed on the table. All you will have to do is stand by the door and serve the Queen more wine or help her to another portion of the dishes on the table if she asks. Think you can do that?" Billy asked in a kind tone.

"Um, yes. Yes, I can. Is it just the Queen though?" Emma replied and felt suddenly nervous.

"Yes, I don't know where her father is. Never mind, it's easier to serve one person than two. Anyway, most of the time you just have to stand by the wall and pretend not to be there. I doubt she'll talk to you, she never does" Billy tried to reassure her.

Emma walked down to the dining hall and as she was let into the elaborate room she saw a long table filled with extravagant dishes and at the end of it sat the Queen. She was still dressed in the outfit Emma had helped her into but she looked different now.

Emma saw that she was drinking wine from an ornate silver goblet, maybe that was the difference? The wine had brought colour to the Queen's cheeks and seemed to relax her usually rigid posture slightly.

The mind-blowingly beautiful smile the Queen gave Emma as she entered was new as well. As Emma saw it she suddenly forgot all about how tired and hungry she was after her hard day, suddenly she felt like everything in the world was just perfect.


	22. Chapter 22

"G-G-Good evening, your Majesty" Emma managed to stutter as she curtsied gawkily.

Regina's smile, which was completely due to the blonde with the newly sun-kissed skin in front of her, didn't falter as she bade Emma to come in. Emma walked in and forgetting that she should not speak unless spoken to asked where the Queen's father was.

"He was feeling tired and decided to dine on some bread, cheese and cold meats in his bedchamber. I'm afraid you are stuck with just me tonight, my dear" Regina teased in an almost flirtatious tone.

Emma just smiled politely and nodded, completely oblivious to what the Queen's tone meant, she just assumed it was a sign of too much wine on an empty stomach. This brought Regina's now empty goblet to her attention and Emma immediately grabbed the carafe and held it out to the Queen as a silent question.

Regina dipped her head as a reply and sat back as the wench filled her ornate silver goblet. As Emma was so close to the Queen's face while she poured the wine, Regina noticed something about the golden-haired woman. It was something which she now realised that her brain had subconsciously picked up on before but not considered relevant enough to bother her conscious mind with.

It was the scent of the younger woman. Not only did she smell cleaner than anyone else in Regina's service, there was also a particular pleasant scent on the girl's skin, a scent which seemed to be stronger tonight than it had been before.

When Emma had filled the goblet with dark red wine she made to move away but the Queen caught her wrist and slowly tugged her closer. Emma's first reaction was to struggle and tense her muscles to get free, this meant that once again the Queen got a chance to see how strong the lithe girl was. Then Emma remembered her place and instantly allowed herself to be pulled close to the Queen.

Regina noticed that the pleasant smell was strongest at a certain place, Emma's neck to be exact, and so she placed her face close to Emma's neck and moved the blonde tresses away with her fingers for better access.

The firm grip and the almost  _greedy_  sniffing of her neck reminded Emma of something. She felt strange sensations which jogged her memory until her shocked mind pieced it together, she was remembering that faceless presence she thought of while  _touching herself_.

The far from gentle but highly welcome physical interaction the Queen was doing reminded her of what she imagined when she was bringing herself to climax. She gasped and tensed up in the knowledge that she shouldn't muddle those erotic feelings with ones concerning her imposing Queen and employer. But then… it felt _so good_.

Regina on the other hand was still savouring the scent on Emma's skin. There was no hint of sweat, dust or dirt as there was on everyone else but just that sweet, flowery smell. This came as a great surprise as Regina knew that the girl had been working hard in the garden most of the day. She asked Emma in a deep and almost commanding voice "what is that alluring smell, dear?"

Emma took a steadying breath and answered "rose petal oil. It was a gift for my 25th birthday which I brought with me from my home. I applied a little extra today after my bath to ensure I didn't smell of… the garden. Would you prefer if I didn't wear it, your Majesty?"

"No, I enjoy that someone in my employment finally doesn't offend my nose. I do however want to look at this oil so I can procure some for myself. Go fetch your bottle now and return immediately" the Queen said and released Emma's wrist.

As Emma went to fetch the oil Regina took another sip of her wine and smiled at the fitting fact that the girl who had been planting Regina's new roses all day now smelled of sweet roses herself. She also wondered if it was her imagination or if the pulse she could feel in the girl's wrist had increased as she smelled her skin.

The Queen realised that she had to be careful. It would most likely be days until the genie found her a lover that reminded her enough of this girl to sate her hunger and until that lover was found, Regina had to be on her guard around the young woman or they would surely end up in bed. Regina couldn't lose control like that,  _no one ever_  made her lose control.

The blonde came hurrying into the room with the small bottle held tightly in her hand. She walked over to Regina, still out of breath from her run upstairs, and handed it to her Queen with an awkward little curtsey.

Regina had to smile at that. Why did it look so odd when this girl curtsied? Was it just lack of practice or was it more to do with the girl's rebellious nature? Regina took the bottle and opened it to smell the viscous liquid inside, the scent was almost sickly sweet and Regina realised that it smelled infinitely better on Emma's skin.

"Thank you, I will ask Mrs Cox to procure a bottle for me" Regina said as she gave the bottle back to Emma. As an afterthought the Queen added "and I will make sure she gets another bottle for you as well, for when this one runs out."

Emma felt herself blush, she realised that the Queen was just looking out for her own interests as she wanted her servants to smell nice but still, when everything was said and done, this was the Queen giving her a present. Emma Swan hadn't exactly been showered with presents in her life and so the notion gave her an unexpected warm feeling in her chest.

The Queen's dinner went on without any further interruptions, Regina didn't have much of an appetite and so she ate sparsely of vegetables, roast potatoes and some sort of grilled bird.

Emma stood by to serve food and to pour another glass of wine but other than that she mainly tried to stop two things from happening… firstly, her stomach from rumbling with hunger and secondly, her stealing glances at the Queen who looked radiant in the flicker of the candlelight and the relaxed atmosphere leant by the wine.

She failed miserably at both and the Queen started to feel quite sorry for the hungry girl at the end of the meal and decided to forgo the dessert that she wasn't in the mood for anyway, and go upstairs to study her newly acquired magic books, thus allowing Emma to call in the footmen who would divvy up the leftover food to the separate sections of the staff as a special treat to go with their usual plain fare.

As Regina left the room Emma stared after her like a lovesick puppy and had to stop herself from shuffling after the beautiful brunette up to her bedchamber. Stuffed into the side of Emma's boot was her small bottle of rose petal oil, it had been precious to her before but now that the Queen had given her so much attention and appreciation over it, the bottle seemed to be a golden treasure to Emma and she picked it up and gave it a quick kiss before returning it to her boot.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: This is a long chapter that is not safe for work.

When Emma had been dismissed the blonde had put her heart and soul into eating as much of the leftovers as she could get her hands on as she had her supper with Mrs Cox, Agnes and the downstairs maids. After that they had all retired to their rare leisure activities or if needed, their chores. In Emma's case that meant mending the hem of one of the Queen's dresses.

Emma felt her eyes strain with the fiddly work in the candlelit room and wished that she hadn't been so tired from the gardening. Suddenly the bell went and Agnes, who was sitting on her own bed reading one of Emma's book, gasped and jumped.

"Relax. It'll be the Queen wanting to get ready for bed, she wants me, not you" Emma murmured as she got up and stretched her still sore muscles.

When she entered the Queen's bedchamber the older woman was sitting by a table with a thick tome opened in front of her, she was tracing a line of text with her finger and didn't look up as Emma entered.

Emma gave a discreet cough and when the Queen looked up Emma curtsied to her and said "ready for bed, your Majesty?"

Regina smiled as the words could be interpreted to mean that they were going to bed together. She glanced at the tired blonde in front of her and for a moment she imagined laying down next to the girl and burrowing her face into that blonde hair and falling asleep. Then she cursed herself for her folly. Romantic notions? That was even worse than lusting after the servant!

"Yes, I am" Regina intoned and walked over to the bed. There she stood waiting until Emma came over to begin to loosen the braid that was pinned up on the Queen's head.

"I see you remembered the correct order of undressing this time" Regina quipped.

"Well yes, although some might say that getting it wrong had a more pleasant outcome" Emma replied without thinking.

They both froze. Emma stopped dead in her tracks because she had just said that she was better off getting it wrong so she could spend more time with the Queen's naked body and Regina did the same simply because she was stunned at the girl's nerve.

Time seemed to stand still as they both waited to see how the other would react. Regina realised that it was up to her to either scold the girl for her comment or to gloss over it. Once again she found herself choosing the option which would be nicer for Emma instead of her usual shielding mechanism of sarcasm and cruel comments.

"You will be dressing and undressing me every day, I am sure you'll get plenty of that pleasant outcome no matter in what order you do it. Now hurry up, I'm tired and I wish to go to bed" Regina said in a casual tone.

Emma just mumbled "yes, your Majesty" and quickly undid the complicated hairdo. As she continued on to taking the corset off she tried to do it as fast as she could but at the same time avoiding any physical contact with the Queen.

Regina noticed that Emma's hands were trembling a little and rolled her eyes. She had hired this girl to avoid frightened little mice serving her. She grabbed the hands that were undoing clasps at her waist and looked deep into Emma's sea-green eyes.

"Stop shaking and pull yourself together. Everything is fine" Regina reassured in a steadying voice.

Emma looked into the brown eyes and saw so much more than expected. There was the usual superiority but there was so much warmth as well and most of all, there was strength. The strength of someone who has faced their demons and lived to tell the tale. Emma wanted to be worthy of that gaze and so she straightened her shoulders and gave a confident nod.

As she continued to undress the Queen, her hands were no longer shaking and the process was therefore speeded up. Soon the Queen was naked and ready for sleep, Regina gave her magic hand-wave and all the candles in the room went out, leaving only the fire in the grate to shed its dim light in the room.

She repeated that deceptively simple magic wave, this time removing her make-up and leaving her face clean and innocent-looking.

Emma pulled the covers away on one side of the bed to allow Regina to get in and then picked up the dress to take it downstairs. As she made to leave the Queen sat up in bed and spoke. "It feels a bit chilly tonight, I think I'll wear a shift. Fetch one for me."

"Of course, your Majesty" Emma replied and put the dress down on the nearby vanity table. She fetched a shift and went to the bed to help the Queen into it, as she did this, Regina couldn't help edging close to get another sniff of that alluring scent of roses on the girl's neck.

"Will that be all, my Queen?" Emma asked and looked deep into those beautiful brown eyes again. Regina stared back and suddenly felt her pulse quicken, she couldn't say why the girl using the words  _my Queen_  had this profound effect on her.

" _Yes_ " the Queen breathed and then cleared her throat to return it to its usual controlled timbre "yes, that will be all. I will ring for you tomorrow when I wake."

Emma didn't curtsy as she made to leave, instead she bowed low. She didn't know why but it somehow seemed more appropriate, more heartfelt. Regina found herself happy that the girl had made that choice as it gave her a lovely view past the lacing of Emma's dress and straight into her smooth-skinned cleavage.

Emma left and Regina immediately put her hand on her chest to feel her thumping heart. It was beating harder than it had for many, many years. What was this? Could it be that she had too much wine? Or was it that intoxicating rose scent?

No. It was desire and even worse, it was something deeper than that, it was a yearning need to be close to the girl. Now her damn mind flooded with questions she wanted to ask the girl to get to know her. This was getting stupid. Regina closed her eyes tight as if she could make the feelings go away if she couldn't see.

When she opened them again she realised that she felt too hot. Maybe the shift was a bad idea, especially if her heart was going to keep beating in this swift rhythm. She pulled it off and made her long, thick brown hair fall down all tangled onto her naked shoulders.

Then she kicked off the covers as well and laid down naked on the bed. She closed her eyes and felt the blood racing in her veins. She thought about Emma and the way she smelled and the way her hands had felt when Regina grabbed them to steady them. God how she wanted those hands on her body right now!

She bit her lip and realised there was only one thing to do, she let her hand slide down her stomach and reach the silky, dark curls between her legs. When her fingers slid into her folds she found them wet and chuckled wryly. She hadn't even noticed that she had gotten this wet, when did that happen?

She began to touch herself and closed her eyes. It wasn't long until she was imagining that the fingers caressing her slick velvet was Emma's.

Emma on the other hand had stood frozen out in the corridor all this time. She couldn't go back to her room and face Agnes right now, she felt far too confused and strangely elated, the Queen was so incredible and so interesting and she made Emma feel things she had never imagined. It was so odd, everything seemed frightening but she felt so  _alive._

Suddenly Emma gave a gasp, she had forgotten the dress in there. It had to be taken downstairs to be aired and cleaned off tonight. She had to go back in and retrieve it.

She turned and listened at the door, it seemed quiet in there. Based on her own sleeping habits she assumed that the Queen was already asleep and so she decided to sneak in and quickly fetch the dress in the dark. She quietly opened the door and with slow, quiet steps she edged into the room.

Emma threw a quick glance at the bed to ensure that the Queen was asleep and nearly choked on her own tongue when she saw what was actually happening on the lavish bed. The light from the fire was just enough to give her a clear view of the uncovered Queen who laid on top of the sheets and was writhing and breathing heavily while her elegant hand played between her thighs.

Emma felt her breathing and her heartbeat cease completely for a brief moment. The Queen was so incomprehensively beautiful, the way she moved and the way her breathing sounded and was that… yes that was a quiet moan escaping the Queen's perfect lips, it was all so wonderful and it completely short-circuited Emma's brain.

She knew that she should hurry out of there, mainly because staring at someone while they did something so intimate was wrong but also because the Queen would skin her alive if she caught her looking at her like this. So why weren't her feet moving? Why wasn't she leaving? Why was she standing there with that tentative and tingling pull in her abdomen? Why was she taking in every inch of the beautiful body trembling in self-induced pleasure in front of her?

When the blonde's eyes fixed on the hand moving between the slender legs Emma stopped thinking about the morality about what was happening and instead focused on the science of what she saw. An expert on satisfying herself she was surprised to see that the Queen was doing something different to what Emma usually did.

Emma would normally just rub and circle that swollen little nub at the apex of her phoenix's nest. But the Queen was sliding two fingers over that little protrusion and down low where the two fingers were swallowed into her entrance. Then the fingers emerged and went back up again to repeat the movement. Whenever the fingers touched the nub or entered the opening the Queen would gasp for breath or moan.

First when Emma looked the fingers moved slowly but as she watched the process sped up and soon the Queen's fingers were moving over the nub and into the entrance at a great speed and the older woman's breathing and increasing moaning was becoming louder and more urgent.

Emma felt her nipples harden and that pull in her abdomen soon became a liquid heat that seemed to radiate down between her legs. She could feel her sex start to throb with need as she looked at and listened to the woman on the bed. Involuntarily she licked her pink lips and felt a feeling of panic. She had to go, this was wrong, but then it was so mesmerising!

Suddenly Regina's back arched up from the bed and she cried out long and earnestly. Emma forced herself to move and leave the room before the beautiful brunette's climax subsided and she became aware of the room again.

The blonde reached out and snatched up the dress and with painfully furtive steps she left. The last thing she saw before she gently closed the door was the Queen making a satisfied little mewling noise and turning over to her front to cuddle into her pillow.


	24. Chapter 24

Regina woke up feeling like she just had the best night's sleep of her life. She stretched and wondered if her deep sleep had been due to the activities before bed or something to do with Emma.

Regina frowned. Emma. It was impossible for her to know if getting a lover who looked like Emma would help or if she would have to let the girl go. After all, there must be more girls like that blonde out there, girls who have half a brain and courage enough not to shy away in fear every second and surely they couldn't all be as... tempting as Emma?

But Regina had to admit that she didn't want to replace Emma, in fact she desperately wanted to keep the girl around. The peculiar but lovely blonde seemed to calm her and to sooth that restless and empty feeling that had taken root in the Queen's chest.

Regina decided to get up and not worry about it anymore until she had tried the trick with the Emma-look-a-like lover. She rang the magically enhanced bell and waited for only a brief moment before Emma came in. The maid was dressed and her hair was coiffured perfectly and so Regina assumed the girl had been awake and working.

"What time is it, wench?" Regina asked coldly as she tried to keep the familiarity out of her voice while speaking to Emma.

"Around eight, your Majesty" Emma replied, she stood tall and proud but she wasn't looking Regina straight in the eye.

Agnes knocked on the door and when Emma opened the younger girl handed her a pail filled with just above lukewarm water. The blonde took it and gave Agnes a reassuring smile before closing the door.

Floating in the pail was a cloth and as soon as Regina had gotten up and with Emma's help taken the shift off, Emma picked up the cloth and began to gently rub Regina's body down with it. Emma actually shivered at the gorgeous sight of the wetness from the cloth coating the golden skin.

"Does the water have the cleaning salts in it? Agnes sometimes forgets, that's what happens when all that is in your head is rotten cheese and dirty thoughts about footmen" Regina snarled.

Emma took a deep breath. The Queen was obviously in a bad mood so maybe she had spotted Emma after all? She winced and felt sickened at herself for her actions last night, why had she stayed and invaded the Queen's privacy like that?

She was however surprised that the Queen wasn't completely furious at her, this seemed more like tetchiness than fury. But then the Queen seemed fine with showing her body off to people, maybe she didn't mind her personal maid seeing her touch herself? No, that was silly… wasn't it?

As her mind kept re-hashing the previous night, Emma wondered if Regina maybe hadn't seen her after all, maybe she had noticed that the dress was gone this morning and so assumed that Emma had observed her because of that? Maybe, just maybe, the Queen wasn't sure?

Emma bit her own cheek as a sort of punishment as she kept thinking about all of this. She should have left the dress or at least she should have knocked on that damn door before going in! No, no that wasn't the point, the point was that she shouldn't have stayed when she saw what the Queen was doing, but she just hadn't been able to help herself. She frowned and swore to herself that she would make it up to the Queen somehow.

"Yes, your Majesty. If you mean those little white grains that is? I could see them fizzing in the water when Agnes handed the pail to me" Emma replied in a quiet and contrite voice.

At the sound of Emma's tone Regina turned towards her swiftly and hissed "what's wrong with you this morning? Are you going to start giving me the scared mouse routine now as well? Behave as normal, right now!"

Emma stood up straighter and Regina could see the beautiful woman's jawline working as she ground her teeth. This fascinated the Queen who couldn't shake the reoccurring bouts of affection and desire for the young woman.

Regina gave a wicked smirk and moved her still damp and naked body closer to Emma as she purred "my little maid has something to say, doesn't she? Is she angry or is she upset about something? I can't tell. If I gave her permission to speak, would she be a good girl and tell her Queen everything? Hmm?"

Regina's hand reached out and she cupped Emma's chin and whispered hungrily "that slight dip in your chin is just  _delicious_ " more to herself than Emma.

Emma confusion grew to new heights. Was this a threat or some sort of courting behaviour? If it was the latter, was that proof that the Queen knew about Emma seeing her or was it proof of the opposite? What did this woman want with her?

Regina stared spellbound at Emma's jaw and chin and moved in close as if she was going to kiss her and just as Emma wondered if she would return the possible kiss or scream in fear… there was a knock on the door.

"Your Majesty! Are you in there?" It was Mrs Cox's voice. "Your Majesty, you are urgently needed downstairs. There is an envoy who claims to be sent by the fairies wishing to see you. I told the footmen to let me fetch you in case you weren't dressed!"

Emma muttered "what in the name of all the ogres does that matter if she is on the other side of the door? What, the footmen can see through solid oak now?"

Regina stared at Emma with incredulity and began to truly laugh at what Emma had just said. Emma looked down in embarrassment of her sarcastic comment but she was smiling hugely at the throaty but melodic laugh she was being rewarded with from the Queen.

When she had finished laughing the Queen called out towards the door "I shall attend to the envoy shortly, offer them refreshments and then let them wait. I do not hurry for the sake of  _fairies_."

Emma, who harboured no fond feelings for the fairies had to agree with the Queen's decision. But as she was congratulating herself on improving the Queen's mood she felt a cold chill start at the top of her neck and spread down her spine. The Fairies! What if their envoy saw and recognized her!? Or if they described her and the Queen understood who she was? Would the woman in front of her send her back to those callous little flying creatures who only saw her as a symbol and heir to some distant throne?

"Well?" Regina asked.

"Huh?" Emma replied dumbly as the Queen's comment woke her from her thoughts.

"The clothes, dear. If I am to face this envoy of the brightly coloured moths I at least intend to do so with my clothes on. The blue dress with the silver trim and decorations and an open back, I think. Imposing but enthralling seems like a good approach" Regina mused.

In a terrified daze Emma went to fetch it and as she looked at it she said "but… you cannot wear a corset with this, as your back is naked it would show through, your Majesty."

"Exactly, dear. It will be just me, the silver jewellery and that blue velvet. Whatever envoy they sent is sure to appreciate that,  _don't you think_?" Regina teased.

Emma swallowed, for a brief moment she was distracted from her possible upcoming doom and just thought about the blue velvet against the Queen's nakedness. Then her feelings of dread returned and she scowled as she began dressing the beautiful woman that she hoped wouldn't send her away soon.

When the Queen was dressed and Emma had finished her hair, the brunette turned to her and casually said "I will go and take care of this envoy, after that I wish to speak to you. I'll ring for you so don't sneak off with any footmen like your new friend tends to."

"Oh no danger of that" Emma replied without really thinking, she was too preoccupied with if she should make a run for it now or trust that the Queen wouldn't send her back to the fairies.

Regina gave a satisfied smirk before purring "good, now  _that_  is what I like to hear" and leaving the room. The sound of the closing doors made the anxious Emma jump as she worried about what she should do, flee or hope that the Queen would protect her? Should she risk running away again?


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: The next two chapters will be a little angsty and violent. Nothing too bad, but you might want to be in the right frame of mind for some action.
> 
> I also want to point out that I am once again getting requests for longer chapter more seldom. I have tried writing that way and I can't do it, I prefer the story to have chapters which reflect one scene at a time. When I have more time to write, like today, I will publish two chapters at a time. But that is the way I write. If you want longer chapters I suggest letting a few updates stack up and then reading them together. I'm sorry, but I can't write any other way without losing my pace.

 

Regina walked down the stairs without hurry, her heels click-clacked on the stone steps and they made a steady rhythm to accompany her thoughts. She was furious with herself again, she had been so close to kissing that infernal girl. And saying that she wanted to talk to her after this meeting? It had been an impulse, a whim from a woman used to being able to do what she wanted ever since she freed herself from the power of Rumpelstiltskin and the toxic influence of her mother.

Her mother, how she would hate that her daughter was so spellbound by a servant. How she would scold her for wanting to get to know the girl better. Regina felt ashamed, as if her mother's judging eyes could reach her all the way from Wonderland.

But then the anger flared up again, she was her own woman now. For more than 25 years she had ruled her own kingdom and done precisely what she wanted. If she wanted the blonde, why not take her? But then it was so… beneath the status of a Queen. Once again the image of her mother appeared in her mind and she winced.

She decided to talk to her father about this. She would leave out the sordid details of her lust of course but if she told him that she had grown interested in this woman, he would surely advise her well.

She arrived downstairs and walked to one of the drawing rooms by the front entrance, this was where guests were usually taken, well the few guests that braved coming to see the Queen these days at least.

Regina nodded to the footman and then drew herself up to her full height and allowed a slightly amused but highly superior look to adorn her features. The footman opened the door and bellowed "Her Royal Highness, Queen Regina."

There was a chuckle and a woman's voice croaked "oh, is that what you call yourself? We tend to just call you the Evil Queen."

Regina managed to hide just how stunned she was. She had expected the fairies to send someone important or at least someone impressive, a high ranking soldier or someone of noble birth, but no, they sent this?

In front of her were two women, the one who had spoken was a very old woman, probably of the same age as her own father, who sat in a chair and loudly slurped tea and the woman standing next to her was a tall, dark-haired and, Regina had to admit, incredibly beautiful woman in a red hood. The beautiful woman looked like she must be about 5-10 years younger than Regina but she had clearly not had the magic powers to make her face look younger as Regina had.

It was the old, decrepit woman who spoke again now. Despite her age the woman seemed determined and unafraid and Regina could see an old crossbow leaning against the chair next to her.

"No matter what you call yourself, you will give us our princess back. We have searched everywhere and found neither the girl or her dead body so that only leaves you,  _your Majesty_ " the wrinkled woman said with her voice dripping with disdain.

Regina laughed heartily. "Let me just make sure I understand this. The fairies are convinced I made off with their precious little jewel and they send  _you two_  to make me give her back?"

The slender brunette in the red cloak replied. "Yes, they sent us. My grandmother and I are werewolves and while she no longer shifts, she has years of experience with killing people who underestimate her with her crossbow. Now, Snow White was my best friend and you killed her. The fairies wouldn't allow me nor anyone else to take her daughter in and raise her and so I couldn't do right for the little princess then. But I can now. Dead or alive, hand her over or I will shift and tear your pretty jugular out with my wolf's teeth."

Regina paused for a moment. Not because she was worried about the woman's threat, a werewolf was no match for her powers, she could kill them both with a snap of her fingers. But what she had said about Snow White… that had hurt. This woman had been a friend of Snow's. Suddenly Regina began to feel those strange and potent mixed feelings of guilt and triumph and it threatened to burst her chest open with the overflow of clashing emotions.

She hissed "I don't have the girl. And for the record I didn't order the murder of Snow White and her prince because if I did it would have been a more fitting death for her station and yes… I would have ensured that the child was raised by someone else than those sparkly fruit flies. Now look what happened, they probably fed the girl nothing but fairy dust until she just flew away! I suggest you go search the skies, Madam Werewolf and leave me to run this kingdom in peace."

The old woman stood up from her chair and purposefully dropped the cup of tea to allow it to shatter in a thousand pieces by her feet before asking "so you refuse to hand the girl over?"

"Are you deaf, old woman? I. Did. Not. Take. Your. Princess. Now be gone" Regina snarled before lifting her hands to lift the two women up in the air and then shoot them through the large stained glass window out to the front gardens.

Regina stood still in place with her hand prepared to create a fireball in case they were dumb enough to try and climb back in. But instead she heard them scramble up and the younger woman carry the older one away from the castle. Throughout their exit she could hear the old woman mumbling swear words and curses, Regina even heard the words "stuck-up miller's granddaughter kept together by nothing but magic and hate" spilling from the old woman's lips as she was carried away.

Regina grinned at the comment and beamed at how easy and entertaining it had been to get rid of the two werewolves. Until she caught her own reflection in a large bit of the broken glass from the window. The face in the glass wasn't laughing, it was contorted into a strange grimace which tried to be a smile but looked more like someone about to burst into tears. In her mind one word kept repeating… "Snow. Snow. Snow. Snow." Regina waved her hand and the shard of glass smashed into a million tiny pieces.


	26. Chapter 26

Emma had decided that she had to run. She didn't know if she would be thrown out or not but one way or another she knew that the Queen would not be happy about Emma not divulging that she was a runaway princess.

Maybe the Queen even knew who's throne it was Emma might usurp. Emma knew that she was heir to one of the thrones in the nearby kingdoms but assumed it must be quite far away, after all, the fairies surely couldn't have been dumb enough to keep her close to this evil monarch who would surely want to kill her. No, it must be a kingdom far away. But still, she knew that the Queen would not be pleased with her deception. She had to run away again.

It didn't take long for her to pack up her few belongings, get dressed in the clothes she had arrived to the castle in and get ready to go. As she packed she found the gardening clothes that the Queen had created for her by magic. She ran her hands over them and realised that she really didn't want to leave the Queen. Sure, she had grown fond of Agnes and Billy in the few days in the castle but with the Queen it was different. That woman made her feel things she had never felt before, she made her feel drawn to her like a flower to towards the sun. The Queen made her feel things so much stronger than she thought possible, every emotion was heightened and every second near the Queen seemed to  _matter_  so much more.

As she continued to caress the cloth she chuckled to herself as she realised that she didn't even know the Queen's real name. But then the chuckle died on her lips as she realised that she did know that she had been lying to the Queen and spying on her as she did intimate things. She had to leave and she had to leave now.

She folded up the gardening clothes and picked up her bottle of rose petal oil and as she left she snuck into the Queen's bedchambers and put the clothes and the bottle on the Queen's bed.

Suddenly Emma noticed that her chest was feeling constricted, like someone had taken both sides of her ribcage and squeezed it together. She didn't want to go. She shook her head to clear it and hurried out of the room and down the stairs, praying that she wouldn't meet Agnes or one of the footmen on her way.

She walked as quickly as she could without running through the kitchen, almost knocking over a kitchen maid on her way, and out through the small side door that lead to the garden. She planned to leave through the hedges at the back of the garden and see what was on the other side. She looked back to see if that kitchen maid was looking but the girl seemed to have gone back to skinning rabbits. Emma took a deep breath and slowed her pace slightly, she didn't want to draw too much attention.

She had made it quite far into the garden until she felt a big, calloused hand grab her by the arm and yank her back. It was Hollins, the head gardener and he was grinning menacingly.

"Well, if it isn't the Queen's little pet. Not wearing them boy clothes now, are you? Does that mean you won't be gardening today, hmm? Won't be upsetting all the gardeners by showing off your legs in trousers or answering back when I give you an order?" Hollins barked with eyes twinkling in triumph.

Emma tried to pull her arm free but the man's grip was like a vice. "No, I… Um. The Queen sent me to fetch her some things from the village" she lied.

Hollins laughed. "Oh really? Dressed like that and sneaking through the garden towards the hedges. No, I think the Queen's little pet is running away. Why is that? Were you not able to stand the Queen's moods? Didn't like how she dressed you up? Or did the Queen do more than just  _dress you up_ , wench?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, you maggot. Let me go!" Emma screamed, now furious.

Hollins slapped her hard and his hand left a red imprint on her cheek. He leaned close to her and with a disgusted tone he whispered "I'm going to bring you to Mrs Cox and she can deal with you, then you'll wish you never even thought of running away or more importantly crossing me and Mrs Cox. The Queen isn't the only person to fear in this castle _, little girl_."

He dragged her back in kicking and screaming and brought her into an empty scullery, the same kitchen maid that Emma had almost knocked over went past and Hollins snarled "get Mrs Cox" to her.

"What do you plan to do to me?" Emma asked and managed to keep any hint of fear out of her voice. She stood as tall as she could with his hand still tugging at her arm and she kept her head held high. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing how frightened she actually was.

"That will be up to Mrs Cox. She is much better at dealing out punishments than I am, I tend to use my fists. But that one, she uses her brain to think of things that will really humiliate you. And she doesn't like you, missy. She never got any say in hiring you and she is none too happy about the power you already seem to have over the Queen. Well you've done it now, girl. We finally have something to punish you for and the Queen is busy dealing with the envoy, so she won't be interfering" Hollins concluded smugly.

Emma looked him straight in the eye and reached her free hand up to punch him. Sadly it was her left hand and so the blow was weak and more stung the man's nose than caused any real damage.

"You little whore!" Hollins bellowed and punched her back. His blow had full power and Emma went flying back. Hollins walked after her and looked like he was leaning in for another punch when suddenly he was yanked back. His body flew out of the scullery door and out towards the side door. Emma could see that branches reaching from the apple tree right outside had reached in and pinned the man to the wall by the door.

The branches snaked around his body and squeezed him tight. All of a sudden Emma could hear the Queen's low voice say "what do you think you are doing with  _my maid_ " in the most frightening tone Emma had ever heard.


	27. Chapter 27

Emma got up and realised there was a fair amount of blood trickling from her mouth. She felt her teeth and realised that they ached but were still firmly planted in their places, then her tongue found a liberally bleeding wound on the inside of her cheek, she had clearly bit her cheek when Hollins punched her. Oh, well… at least that will heal, she thought.

Emma looked up at the head gardener who was pinned to the wall by the branches of the tree just outside the open door. He was wheezing and trying to get his breath to answer the Queen's question.

"My Queen, I was just punishing the wench for trying to run away " he finally managed to croak. Regina's head turned to Emma with such speed that it made Emma jump.

"You were  _running away_?" Regina hissed to Emma.

Emma swallowed the blood that was gathering in her mouth and mumbled "yes, but I can explain."

"Oh, you most certainly will. Go upstairs to my chambers and I will hear your reasons and administer your punishment myself" the Queen hissed with fire in her eyes.

Emma immediately obeyed. As she was walking out of the kitchen she saw the kitchen maid that Hollins had sent to fetch Mrs Cox, the girl smiled at Emma and nodded. All of a sudden Emma realised that the girl had not only gone to fetch the Queen instead but that she was also the spitting image of Billy the footman, that couldn't be a coincidence.

Behind her Emma could hear the Queen growling "what about you? Do you wish to explain why you decided to punish the maid by beating her in a scullery instead of our usual methods?"

Hollins coughed from the lack of air and croaked "the girl needed to learn her place, she has been treating this palace as if she was some kind of princess. I wanted her to learn to respect not only you, your Majesty, but me and Mrs Cox as well."

Emma hurried upstairs, unsure if she wanted to hear the rest of this conversation and equally unsure of the fate that awaited her.

Regina swallowed some of her anger down and realised that the man had a point. She knew that she had enjoyed the girl's rebellious nature and therefore had encouraged it without thinking about how that would upset the rest of the staff and its consequences for Emma.

She waved her hand and the branches slowly released the man down onto the ground. With a tone that could kill she said "I see. Well, how I decide to treat my maid is up to me and not you. I do however see how the girl can cause trouble if she is integrated into the castle's workforce. I will have her by my side so that I can discipline her myself, she will no longer work in the gardens."

Hollins nodded in a way that conveyed that he wanted to say something but didn't dare.

The Queen continued. "However, her behaviour and my possible mistake in letting the girl run wild aside, your conduct was inappropriate, the sort of beating that you were administering should have been checked with me first."

As she said it she realised that if the maid had been anyone but Emma she would not have cared half as much, she might have remarked that a beating with the gardener's strong fists was too much but then she would have moved on. Now she wanted to stick Hollins on a stake and roast him over an open fire.

Hollins gave that reluctant nod again but said nothing.

"Take such liberties again and you will be lucky to escape this castle in human form. Hold out your hands in clenched fists" Regina finished with her voice returned to normal.

The weathered man knew what was coming and he stood up straight before holding his fists out in front of his body. Regina gave a swift wave of her hand and a small branch from the apple tree outside reached in and snapped the man hard over the exposed knuckles. It left a long, bleeding cut over the knuckles on both hands and the man clenched his jaw not to make a noise.

The Queen gave a regal dip of the head and then looked around to see that a small crowd had formed around them. She glanced over the crowd to try and gage their reaction to what they had seen, but the faces were completely neutral, which unnerved her more than she would ever let show.

In a commanding tone she added "everyone return to your duties. There is glass to be cleaned up in the front drawing room" then she turned to leave the room and go upstairs where Emma would be waiting for her.

When she walked through the doors she saw Emma standing by the window and combing her fingers through her long blonde hair. She had taken it down from its bun as it had clearly been in a state of disarray after she had been thrown about.

The young woman still had a slightly red cheek where she had been slapped and her lower lip had dark stains of dried blood. Her forehead was creased in a worried frown and she looked like the weight of the world was on her shoulders.

As she was walking over to the blonde Regina saw the pile of clothes and the bottle of rose petal oil on her bed. Glad to have something to start the conversation with, she pointed to it and drawled "what's  _that_?"

Emma didn't face her when she answered, she kept her eyes fixed out of the window as she muttered "the gardening clothes you made for me and the bottle of scent you liked. I wanted you to have them. I don't know why, maybe as an apology for me leaving or as a thank you for taking me in."

Regina heard the despondency and the deep sadness in the younger woman's voice and it cut her deeply. How was she going to shout at the girl when Emma so clearly needed affection and comfort? As she was still deciding what to do Regina settled for asking "why were you running away?"

Emma shrugged. She knew that she couldn't tell the Queen the truth, the words simply wouldn't come out of her mouth. Instead she just looked down to the floor and prepared herself for whatever punishment could come, after all, it couldn't be worse than being sent back to that gilded cage that the fairies provided. Emma would rather suffer pain and humiliation than be suffocated and ignored again.

For once in her life, Regina truly had no idea what to do. Part of her wanted to smack the girl until she spoke and explained herself and the other part wanted to embrace Emma and hold her close until that look of sadness went away.

Confused at what to do, she was never taught how to behave when someone was sad, Regina walked over to the bed and picked up the bottle of oil. She pulled out the stopper and smelled it, it was still too sickly sweet when it was in this form.

She walked over to Emma by the window and with one hand she caressed the long blonde locks away from the other woman's neck while upending the bottle onto a finger of the other hand, when she had oil on it she gently placed it on Emma's neck, right on the pulse point.

Emma closed her eyes at the touch, she had experienced so little touching in her life that the tender fingers pressed against the side of her neck felt almost like an embrace. She couldn't understand why the Queen wasn't punishing her or throwing her out. Did the fairies not tell her who Emma was?

Meanwhile, a grim thought went through Regina's mind and she felt her breath catch in her chest. Quietly she voiced the question that had come to her. "Were you leaving because I… made improper advances towards you?"

Emma turned to the older woman with wet eyes and a confused look. "No! No, of course not, your Majesty."

Even Emma couldn't be in doubt now, clearly the Queen didn't know who she was. A voice deep inside her told her to tell the Queen everything but as Emma saw the sudden look of empathy and care in the stunning brown eyes she just… couldn't. Instead she leaned into the two fingers on her neck and Regina instantly joined the rest of her fingers to them so that Emma was resting her neck into Regina's hand.

"Then why were you leaving? Regina asked in a voice that broke slightly with pent up emotion and she wanted to kick herself for it.

"I… I did something bad, your Majesty. Something I shouldn't have done, especially to someone who took me in and gave me a job like you did" Emma answered on instinct. After all this was true, one of her reasons for leaving had been her appalling behaviour when she watched the Queen pleasure herself.

Regina's brow knitted as she pondered what the girl could mean. "I see, and what did you do?"

Emma swallowed hard. This was not going to be easy. She steeled herself and quickly spat out the words "I accidentally walked in on you last night when you were… touching yourself, your Majesty. And to my great shame, I stayed to watch for a while. I didn't mean to, but you were just so… beautiful that I couldn't look away. I had never seen anything so captivating before and I had never felt the feelings of, well arousal I suppose, that I felt then. I froze and I stared for too long. I won't ask for your forgiveness because I don't expect any, but I still want you to know that I regret my actions."

Regina couldn't help it, she had to laugh. "Dear girl, was that all? Do not misunderstand me, I would maim most people who took such liberties but considering the… way we have interacted lately, I could easily forgive you for having a look." Naturally Regina didn't tell Emma about when she came into the girl's room with the hopes of catching her while dressing, but the memory did echo in her mind at that point.

Emma looked up and her sea-green eyes found the Queen's chocolate brown ones. "Really? You won't throw me out? I will serve every punishment you can think of without complaint as long as you don't throw me out!"

The Queen moved her hand, spreading the rose petal oil in its wake, up over Emma's jaw and to her cheek. "Oh, I am sure I can think of a way for you to repay me for your voyeurism and a way for you to make your little escape attempt up to me" she cooed with a wicked smile.

Emma felt that smile reverberate through her entire body to finally end up as a pleasant tingling between Emma's legs.

Realising where this was heading Regina forced herself to take a step back and harden her voice as she said "I do not want you to get the wrong idea here, Emma Swan, you are  _my servant_. As such you will do what you are told, take your punishments and not get any ideas above your station. You will respect me, fear me and serve me… you will not mistake our relationship for anything more. Understood?"

As Emma knew nothing about deeper relationships she assumed that this was a good a goal as any and nodded sincerely.

As she did, the sunlight highlighted the bloodstains on her lower lip and Regina sighed as if an enormous imposition laid before her before muttering "I suppose I better heal those injuries to ensure they don't disfigure your pretty face. After all, it is one of the few things you have going for you."

Emma knew that this should be a grave insult, but she was so happy and the Queen seemed so insincere in her slating that Emma couldn't help but smile.

The Queen shook her head at the smile, while inwardly congratulating herself on being the source of it, and let her hand glow with purple magic as she rested her hand close to Emma's face and healed the reddening on her cheek as well as the deep bite wound on the inside of her of it.

When she had finished Emma marvelled at how all the pain was gone. Well almost all of it. Emma looked sheepish as she admitted "when I was knocked backwards I landed on my behind and I think I will have a huge bruise there, would your Majesty like to heal that too?"

Regina gave an amused chuckle and muttered "don't push your luck, wench.  _That_  will have to heal by itself."


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you for all your lovely comments/reviews on both FFnet and AO3. It has always been my policy to try and respond to all comments, but as you might have noticed the last couple of weeks, I can no longer keep up with that. So I will answer some comments when I have the time and if I don't answer your particular one, please don't take it personally or think that I am not insanely grateful that you took the time to tell me your thoughts or give me suggestions. I will still read all reviews and comments naturally! Thanks!

When Emma was woken up the next day she felt tense all over, that wasn't much of a surprise to her though considering how Hollins' blow had sent her flying to the ground and, well, the punishment.

In an attempt to appease Mrs Cox, Regina had decided that the main part of Emma's punishment should mirror one of Mrs Cox's favourite penances, sleeping on the hard floor. However, as she had promised Hollins that she would keep Emma out of everyone's way until the girl knew how to behave, Emma had been sleeping on the Queen's floor, right below the Queen's bed to be exact.

As the Queen's room was always the warmest one, Emma hadn't been too chilled on the hard floor but she hadn't been comfortable either. The only bonus was that as the Queen fell asleep, her hand rested off the bed, just above Emma's head.

Before the blonde fell asleep she spent a long time looking at it and admiring the fine web of veins on the back of the elegant hand. Her last thought before sleep took her was that she would give almost anything to trace those veins with her tongue and to kiss those long, slender fingers.

But now it was morning and Emma had just been woken up. After realising that she was stiff as a board she realised something else, the thing that had woken her was being pushed in the ribs by a naked foot.

Emma blinked to try and clear her vision and looked up at the bed. The Queen was sitting on the edge of the bed, right above Emma, and prodding her with a foot.

The Queen had slept naked and the morning light showed every inch of her sleep-warm body. Emma stared ravenously at it all until she reached her monarch's beautiful face to find the older woman smiling. Not the usual smug or feral smile that she would wear when she caught Emma looking, but an almost innocent and truly happy smile.

It shocked Emma wholly awake and she sat up and kept staring at the blissful smile. Sadly it didn't last long, soon the Queen's mask reappeared on her un-painted face and the brunette mumbled "you make a noise when you sleep."

Emma brushed off the shift she had slept in and stretched before apologising sincerely.

"That's alright. It was… rather endearing if I am to be honest. However, if you tell anyone I said that I will deny it vehemently" the Queen said and smoothed her tousled hair over her shoulders.

Emma tried not to smile as she quietly wondered if it had been her apparent noise during sleep which had made the Queen smile or her presence in the room. She assumed it must be the noise, the smile must be a mocking one. But then it didn't  _seem_  mocking, it seemed… well, just happy.

The Queen had been strangely hot and cold with Emma since yesterday. One second she would laugh with Emma and ask her what colour she liked and the next she would scold the blonde for being too familiar or for speaking too much. It confused Emma and left her feeling unsure of how the Queen felt about her.

But it didn't much matter to her right now. After all, she was safe and she didn't have to go back to the fairies and more than that… she was  _with the wonderful Queen_. Emma knew that she was meant to stay by the Queen's side constantly until the monarch decided what to do with her and if she was honest, she was very happy with that arrangement even if it meant sleeping on a hard floor.

Emma bowed to the Queen while saying "I will go wash and get a clean dress for the day, your Majesty. Then I will return to dress you, if that pleases you?"

Regina agreed "yes, that would be good" and as Emma left she added "don't forget that oil of yours, I like to smell it on you."

Emma turned and nodded with an obvious blush on her pale cheeks. When the doors closed behind the maid, Regina put her head in her hands and growled in frustration. What had she done?

It had made such sense to keep Emma by her side to keep the girl out of trouble and out of everyone's way but she hadn't realised how much it would intensify her feelings towards the woman. Regina found herself wanting to protect the blonde even more and, yes, she found herself desiring the blonde even more as well. It was a dangerous combination.

She would have to do something with the girl today to keep her hands busy and not on the blonde's slight but alluring bosom. She had planned to study those magic books she acquired the other day but now something else would have to fill the day. As she rubbed some sleep out of her eyes it hit her… Riding, yes, she'd make Emma go out riding with her. Or at least assist her, as she assumed a maid could not ride.

But first, there was something else to be done. She stood up and realised that she was standing where Emma had slept and that the floor still harboured some of her warmth, which Regina's naked feet now thoroughly enjoyed. That blissful smile came back onto her face, it had been so nice to sleep with someone.

Regina had never really had that as most her lovers, including the king, had either been kicked out of her bed or left when they were satisfied. But she could now see the allure, it felt safe and intimate to share sleep like that.

Even if the blonde had not been in her bed, she had still been right there and Regina was fully aware that she could wake Emma at any time she wished. She could wake her to talk or to ask the girl to fetch her some water or… maybe even to ask the younger woman to come up into the bed. She had no doubt that the young woman would offer up her virginity if she asked.

Regina shook away those dangerous thoughts and returned to what she wanted to do before Emma came back. She picked up a shift and put it on before approaching the mirror. She chanted "mirror, mirror on the wall..." in a sleep-drowsed voice and the genie's face appeared. He looked terrified.

"My Queen! I have not yet found a suitable bedmate for you, I am very sorry. I do however have a few candidates so if you just give me some more time I will..." he whined.

"Enough!" Regina interrupted. "That was exactly what I wanted to talk to you about. It would seem that I will have a charge in my care for the foreseeable future so I will not have time for lovers. You may end your search and focus your gaze on what my enemies from other kingdoms are doing."

"A charge, my Queen? You mean you have finally found a child to raise as your own?" The genie asked in a sycophantic tone.

"No, not a child. An adult. But an adult that needs my supervision and guidance. Now be gone, your questions bore me" Regina drawled and walked away from the mirror.

The genie faded away with disappointment painted on his vanishing features and Regina headed for the bed to wait for Emma's return under the covers. She stopped as she realised that she could hear voices outside her door. She moved towards the doors and listened intently to the female voice that was speaking.

"…so when the Queen had stopped Hollins she sent me up here and off I went. As I walked up I saw that the kitchen maid looked just like a footman I know, Billy."

An old but warm voice replied "Billy? That name rings a bell. Oh yes, Billy, he is the boy that my daughter helped once. A couple of years back he came here with a delicate problem and with his younger sister in tow, they had been thrown out of the house by their father because of Billy's… secret and because they both refused to conform to their father's harsh plan to deal with the secret."

"What was the secret? What could have been so bad that a father would throw not just his son out but his daughter as well?" Emma asked pensively.

"Well, the secret is not mine to tell so you would have to ask him about that. But he was thrown out because he couldn't be what his father wanted him to be and the girl was thrown out because she sided with him and not their father. I would think my daughter somewhat recognized herself in Billy's problem, her own mother was never… proud of what she was. So she took them in and employed them. It must have been Billy's younger sister who helped you" Henry confirmed.

Regina smiled where she stood, it felt nice that her father and Emma were talking like this, like equals. She mused that her father must like the girl, he mostly kept to his room these days and for him to venture out and then spend his energy speaking to someone else than herself was rare.

"Thank you for telling me, your Highness. I better hurry inside to dress the Queen so she can see you" Emma chirped.

"Oh, just call me Henry. I am far beyond needing titles and royal respect now. These days I am just an impossibly old man who lives to see his daughter's rare smiles. I shall wait out here and you can call me in when she is dressed and ready" the old man said with an equally happy tone as Emma.

"Of course. Oh, but let me fetch you a chair first" Emma hurried replied and suddenly the doors flew open, missing Regina only by a few inches.

"I'm so sorry, your Majesty. Let me just take a chair for your lord father and I will be in to dress you" Emma said over her shoulder as she raced over to the vanity table to pick up a chair to take to the elderly man outside.

Regina gave a slightly bemused smile as the blonde raced past her again, this time with a chair held in front of her. Emma sat it down just outside the door and through the open door Regina could see her father's hand, covered in wrinkles and liver spots, take Emma's and thank her.

Emma closed the doors and began to explain "I'm sorry that took a while, my Queen. It's just that I ran into your father after I had dressed and he asked about the commotion yesterday and I…"

Regina smilingly interrupted "you decided to tell him. I noticed, those doors let through a surprising amount of sound. I can see that you did indeed hurry to get back to me as your braid is still hanging loose. Surely that was meant to be pinned up?" Regina teased with mirth twinkling in her brown eyes.

Emma blushed crimson and immediately reached for the braid in a self-conscious way.

"Oh never mind that" Regina cooed. "You remembered the most important things, your dress and your rose petal oil. Come here and let me smell you."

Emma couldn't help a flattered smile taking over her lips so to cover it up she quickly hurried close to the Queen. The older woman took a hold of the blonde braid that rested on Emma's shoulder and moved it to her back, then she leant in and sniffed the taller woman's neck.

As Regina breathed in the scent of roses on Emma's neck, the blonde felt the Queen's breath against her sensitive skin and gasped at the pleasurable sensation. Happy with that gasp, Regina moved in even closer so that the tip of her nose gently caressed Emma's milky skin. This time the gasp from the blonde's pink lips grew even louder and Emma made her hands into fists to keep herself from begging for more physical contact.

"Now, we better hurry and get me dressed so we can find out what my father wants" Regina leisurely said, as if nothing had just happened.

Emma glared daggers at her and Regina's heart gave a double beat as she realised that she couldn't decide what she liked more, the younger woman being coy and kind to her father or seeing the strength and passion in that defiant glare of frustration. She felt very glad that with Emma, she never had to choose.


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: The following three chapters are going to be emotional. Just as a precaution I repeat what I said the summary, no one else but poor Snow White and Prince Charming will die in this story. Please don’t hate me, angst is our friend and you know I only write happy endings.

Now the Queen was dressed and her hair was done, they had decided on an unusually simple hairdo as they did not want the old man outside to wait too long. It made Emma smile when she saw that the Queen actually hurried her steps to go to the door and open it, however, when she noticed Emma looking she stopped and continued in her usual proud and regal way.

Emma heard the man say "there you are, my dear. Don't you look lovely! Can I come in now?"

The Queen laughed "yes, daddy" and helped him up from the chair. When they were inside the man made a beeline for Regina's bed and sat on the edge of it.

He looked at Emma with an almost shy look and then pointed to the bed as he explained "it's softer than her chairs. I really can't understand why the most powerful person in the realm can't have more comfortable chairs."

The Queen gave him a warning look and he immediately held his hands up in an apologetic gesture and quietly muttered "looks just like her mother when she's displeased."

Regina walked over to him and kissed him on the cheek as she dejectedly replied "don't say that, you know how it upsets me."

He nodded and once again turned to Emma. "She might seem frightening and she might have done things she shouldn't have but be sure of this, my girl, you serve the woman with the biggest heart in all of the Enchanted Forest. I will always be so proud of her."

Regina stood up and pursed her lips while grumbling "I don't know if that is much better. Can we talk about something else?"

"Maybe I should leave, your Majesty?" Emma asked respectfully. She hoped the Queen would say no, she enjoyed being around the timid but kind old man and she liked what the Queen was like when her father was near, she was less guarded and infinitely more approachable. Right now it was hard to think that the woman who stood smiling and caressing her father's shoulder was feared all through this castle.

All of a sudden Henry clasped at his chest and gave a gasp. Regina instantly fell to her knees in front of him. "Daddy, is it your heart again? Is that why you came to see me?"

The man just nodded as the pain prevented him from speaking.

Regina spoke through gritted teeth. "Then why did you wait outside? Why didn't you tell Emma it was urgent? I would have seen you right away, dressed or undressed. Sit still and try to take deep breaths."

Then she held her hand over his chest and Emma could see a light purple glow underneath her hand. But Henry didn't seem to respond in any way and after a few seconds of this the Queen removed her hand. She looked down at it and then back to her father as she whispered "but, why didn't that _work_?"

She put her hand back on his chest and once again Emma could see that light emanating from her palm. Again nothing changed, the old man was still holding his hand over his chest and grimacing in pain. He managed to croak out "I'm sorry, my child."

The Queen's voice seemed to have lost its usual steady, low sound so as she replied "don't be daddy, it will be ok" her voice was breaking with held back tears and panic.

Emma wanted to scream. She couldn't see any way to help but she had to do something!

Finally something came to her. "Should I go get the court physician, your Majesty?"

Regina looked up at Emma as if she had forgotten that she was there. "No, there's not enough time. I'll transport him here, I know the lazy vampire bat will be sleeping in his chambers as usual. Just give me a moment to focus" the Queen snarled as she retreated a few steps back and closed her eyes.

As she did Henry beckoned to Emma with his hand. Emma sat next to him on the bed and leaned in to try and make out what the old man was trying to say.

Quietly and slowly Henry wheezed "my girl used to be so angry and so very hurt all the time. Now 25 years have passed and what she mainly seems to be is… numb. The first time I saw her with you I noticed the life coming back to her face, the passion returning to her body language and the ringing of her voice for a second changed back to how it sounded… before it all went wrong. Please stay with her, please bring her back to whom she used to be. Please make her come alive again, it will be her happy ending."

Emma's mouth fell open. What could anyone say to that? Especially someone with little knowledge of human interactions, especially someone who had only been in this castle a few days. Emma wanted to scream "but I don't even know the Queen's first name!" But she didn't, she knew enough of heart trouble from the animals she had helped the farmhand with to know that upsetting someone with heart pain was a bad idea. So she nodded, tried to look confident and solemnly said "I promise. I will give her the happy ending she deserves and you will be there to see it."

The old man gave as close to a smile as he could muster, laid back on the bed and closed his eyes. Just then there was a flash of purple smoke and the physician appeared. Regina didn't even explain anything to him, she just ran to her father's side and held her hand over his chest. A few seconds later she gave a relieved smile as she said "he's breathing. I think he just lost consciousness."


	30. Chapter 30

The Queen's physician rushed over and felt the man's heart as well and nodded his agreement. "Yes, you Majesty. His heart is beating and he is breathing soundly. I take it your usual magical cure didn't take this time?"

"No" Regina replied shakily and put her hand over her stomach in a frightened gesture. She felt like the room was spinning, her father was all she had. He was the only one who saw past the sarcasm and cruelty, the only one who saw that there was someone who needed love underneath the darkness.

The doctor nodded again, it seemed like all the damn man ever did to Emma. Then he gravely intoned "I don't know if there is much I can do right now. The fact that he fainted was probably the best thing, as he does not feel the pain right now. His heartbeat is weak but stable enough. If he wakes up I am sure we will be able to help him with some good nutrition, healing herbs and rest. But remember, he is a very old man, we cannot be certain that he will survive even if he does wake up."

"What happens if he doesn't wake at all?" Regina asked in a trembling voice.

"Then I am afraid he is beyond my powers. Perhaps you know of some magical cure or someone who might have a spell to save him. But for me to be able to perform my non-magical cures, he will have to wake up" the physician said with a grimace.

"Then he will wake up. And if he doesn't, I will force Rumpelstiltskin to save him. I will not lose my father as I did Daniel. My father will stay here with me tonight, I will transport you back here if he awakes so you must remain in your chambers so I can find you. Is that clear?" Regina growled menacingly at the man standing by the bed.

"Crystal clear, my Queen" he replied with a small bow.

"Good, because if he wakes and I cannot find you, I will let maggots eat you from the inside while you are still alive" the Queen hissed as she stared at him.

"I understand, your Majesty" the physician said with a slight twitch of his left eye.

Then she waved her hand and he vanished in a cloud of purple smoke. After that the Queen sat gently stroking her father's forehead. Emma just sat on the other side of him, feeling useless and like she was intruding on something she shouldn't be.

"Would you… would you... like me to leave you two alone, your Majesty?" Emma finally asked in a tentative voice.

Slowly, like in a daze, the Queen shook her head. "No. No, I need you here with me." Then she froze, as if she realised that she had said too much and she added "because god knows what havoc you could cause in my castle if I didn't keep my eye on you."

Emma sat where she was and just looked at the now very still man, if she didn't know what had happened she would have thought he was just sleeping. "Does… Does this happen often?" Emma finally asked.

"No, but it has become more frequent as the years have gone on. I don't know if he would still be alive if I didn't have my magic to help his heart continue beating properly. However, this is the first time my magic hasn't brought him back to health right away" Regina replied with her voice hoarse with held back emotion.

She walked over to one of the room's many bookshelves and picked out a thick, calfskin-clad tome and opened it while mumbling "this book is supposed to have the realm's largest collection of magical cures. There must be something in here, something I have missed before."

She brought the book over to her vanity table and laid it down to read a particularly long paragraph. Emma could see the older woman's face in the mirror and so she witnessed it turn from focused reading to suddenly being overcome by fear and worry.

Now tears were staring to stream down the Queen's face and making the magical makeup run down the perfect cheeks. Emma felt her breath catch in her chest, she didn't know what to do in this situation, she just wasn't equipped for this. Should she hold the Queen? Would the brunette shun her if she did?

While she helplessly watched the Queen's crying, she noticed that the hurried coiffure she had put the Queen's hair in was coming undone, much like the woman herself. This was something that Emma could help with! She hurried over, picked up a comb and began to slowly undo the hair and lovingly comb it.

Regina stared up at the other woman and a million ways of scaring the girl off so she wouldn't see her tears came to mind. But then she felt Emma start to comb her hair and it felt strangely… right. The blonde wasn't staring at her, wasn't questioning her tears or even trying to be cheerful and act like she hadn't noticed. She just calmly combed the long tresses until they were flowing handsomely down Regina's back.

Regina felt the crushing ache in her chest subside slightly and the tears came less frequently. As always, this young woman had a calming effect on her. She didn't feel better really, but she felt more at ease, more able to deal with the fear. She felt like things weren't as dark as they seemed, she felt like maybe her father had more hope than she first thought.

Emma combed the last few wayward strands with a tense expression and soon the thick, soft hair was perfectly smooth, the blonde caressed her hand over it and Regina almost smiled at inadvertent gesture.

She grabbed Emma's hand and stood up to face the maid, then she brought the blonde's hand up to her face and wiped away her own tears with Emma's slender fingers. She didn't know why she did it, it was like a voice in her said that Emma should be the one to remove the pain and so she started with the tears.

As soon as Regina let go of Emma's hand the blonde brought it back up, hesitantly at first but more confidently when Regina gave a slight nod, to dry off the tears on the other cheek. When Emma had done that she brought the hand up to her mouth and delicately sucked the tears off her knuckles.

Regina looked at her in surprise and Emma felt a tightening in the stomach when she realised that she had once again done something socially unacceptable. Emma shrugged and murmured "that is what I always do with my tears after I have cried. I thought everyone did it?"

The Queen looked at her, baffled but strangely touched at the embarrassed and almost petulant look in Emma's eyes. The she leant in and kissed the tear-stained pink lips of Emma Swan. It was just a chaste kiss, just lips gently touching lips, but it felt like magic to Regina. It felt like even stronger magic than the one she used to burn down an enemy's forest or to create lightning. It felt like the most ancient and sweet power and it took her completely by surprise.


	31. Chapter 31

Regina slowly woke up and realised where she was. She was lying on her bed, on her side next to her father with her head on his chest, hearing his heartbeat still pounding quietly but steady. It might have been her imagination but she thought it had a steadier rhythm this morning than it did yesterday.

There was something else, Regina noticed, something on her legs. She moved her head slightly to see what it was and noticed a large mass of blonde hair splayed out over her lower legs. Sleeping half-sitting on the floor and with her head resting on Regina's lower limbs on the bed was Emma Swan.

Suddenly last night came back to Regina, when she had woken all she could think of was her father and his heartbeat. But now she remembered the tear-flavoured kisses she had shared with Emma last night. She remembered how the kisses had kept coming and how they both had melted into an impossibly comfortable embrace.

She also remembered how the only thing keeping her sane last night was the calm presence of her blonde maid. Maid! She had been kissing the maid! Thank goodness she had at least stopped this folly when the kisses grew more urgent.

Still, those kisses had been the best kisses of Regina's life. By all accounts, they had been the only kisses of Emma Swan's life. No wonder the girl easily agreed when Regina said they had to stop and that she had to go to bed. Obviously the girl was in total shock! But then that wasn't all, there had been so much care and love in how the girl had agreed that they had to stop and added that Regina should be with her father and get some sleep.

Regina recalled how Emma had volunteered to stay awake and watch over them to see if the unconscious man would wake up. Clearly, the blonde must have fallen asleep after a long nights watch. Regina felt that unstoppable tenderness for the young woman flare up again.

"Why is she sitting like that" a groggy voice asked. When Regina turned she saw her father reaching his head up to look at what Regina was looking at, Emma.

Regina gasped "daddy! You're awake! Oh thank all the gods!"

This woke Emma with a start and as soon as she had untangled enough blonde tresses to see anything she gave a relieved laugh.

Regina waved her hand and both hers and Emma's shifts were covered in dresses and their hair was up. Then she waved her hand a second time and the physician appeared. He had clearly been asleep as he came out of the purple smoke almost falling over and made a snorting sound before yawning hugely.

"He's awake! Regina almost screamed at the sleep-drunken man who was still trying to find his footing.

The physician rubbed his eyes as he mumbled "what? Who?"

"Maggots. Eating. You. From. The. Inside. Alive" Regina replied to his question.

The medic seemed to immediately be awake and rushed over to the man on the bed to check his heartbeat. Henry seemed confused but he kept quiet as to not be any trouble to anyone.

Emma was still marvelling that she was dressed and that her hair was up just like that, she also realised that her plain servant's dress now had a corset on top which was squeezing her breasts together and up in a way that Emma hadn't experienced since the fairies made her try on princess dresses for future balls. She wondered if the Queen had just panicked when making their dresses and therefore given them both a corset by mistake or if the older woman's distracted brain had unconsciously decided to dress her up.

The physician looked at Regina and with a sigh of relief said "he seems alright for the time being. His heartbeat is laboured and he is clearly fatigued. I would suggest allowing him to rest and maybe take a little clear broth, I should be with him to monitor his heartbeat and breathing."

Regina cleared her throat and replied "yes, yes of course. Whatever you think is best, I will transport you and him to his bedroom and I will send someone to make him broth. I will join you shortly."

 

* * *

 

 

The rest of the day Regina stayed with her father. He had managed to eat a little but other than that he mainly slept as she sat by his side. The physician had herbs brewed into a tea and at nightfall the old man drank some of that and his eyes lost some of the dullness they had since he passed out.

Meanwhile Emma had sneaked back to Agnes and had been helping the girl with what was supposed to be their shared chores but had mainly fallen to Agnes as Emma had been by the Queen's side.

As Emma worked her mind was somewhere else, it was deep in the memories of the kisses from the night before. She couldn't help but be terrified that the kisses had just been the Queen's need for comfort but she didn't trust her instincts enough to judge exactly what the Queen's actions had meant.

All she knew for sure was that she had never felt happier or more alive than when her lips were gently pressed to the Queen's. Prince or no prince, Emma was pretty sure that this odd feeling she couldn't shake was love.

When evening came around the bell located in the Queen's bedchamber rang. Emma dropped everything and ran to the door without even saying goodbye to Agnes.

When she entered the room she found the Queen sitting at her vanity table again, luckily this time her eyes were dry and her face calm. But there were dark circles under the soulful eyes and the fatigue of the day was written all over the older woman's features.

"Emma. I think I am ready for bed" the Queen said quietly.

"Yes, of course, your Majesty. May I… May I enquire about your father?" Emma asked hesitantly.

Regina gave a tired smile. "Yes, you may. You do sometimes surprise me with your vernacular, you are surprisingly eloquent for someone of your station. He is doing well, everything considered. No one knows if he will fully recover but the physician seems to be more confident of his survival now."

"Good. I'm glad, your father is a lovely man, if you don't mind me saying so. When it comes to my vernacular, I might not have been born to such a low station as you have assumed. But that is a story for another day, my Queen. You must be so tired, come here and let me take your hair down and prepare you for bed" Emma coaxed the exhausted Queen.

Regina walked over to Emma gratefully and the blonde made her ready for sleep. When she was undressed and her hair was down, Regina did her usual magic gesture to blow out all the candles and remove her make-up.

Then she crawled into bed, laid down on her side and quietly whispered "just this once, could you sleep in my bed? Without ever telling anyone? Nothing untoward will happen, I just want to be held."

"Oh. Um. Yes please, your Majesty" Emma breathed and almost jumped into bed and settled behind the Queen. Regina gave a tired smile at the young woman's enthusiasm and then took Emma's arm and draped it over her side.

Finally she backed her body towards Emma so that they were laying in the perfect spooning position. With one last magic wave Regina undressed Emma until she was only wearing her shift and her hair was down as well. Then she slowly fell asleep in the blonde's strong arms.


	32. Chapter 32

Emma woke up to the feeling of something soft pressing against her most intimate parts, with a start Emma realised that it was the Queen's backside. At some point during the night both her and the Queen's shifts had ridden up or crumpled around their waist, she had clearly cocked her leg up over the Queen's hip as well and all that meant that she now had her groin pushed against the full and perfectly soft derriere of her monarch and employer, and now the Queen was moving in her sleep, slowly pushing back onto Emma.

As mentioned before, Emma Swan wasn't used to the concept of human touch, throughout her childhood there hadn't been much of that commodity. Perhaps a hug from the cook when the large lady had a second or a friendly pat on the head from the farmhand, but that was it.

All of a sudden she found herself kissing the most beautiful creature she had ever seen and then 24 hours later, sleeping in that same woman's bed while holding her close. And presently there was the issue of the softness pressed against her nether regions.

Suddenly Emma heard the Queen drowsily purr "my, how  _soft_  that hair is. I swear I could use those little honey-coloured curls down there as a pillow."

Emma tensed up even more than she had when she had woken up. The Queen wasn't sleeping. That slow movement down there was  _intentional_. Oh crap. She felt embarrassed and aroused in equal measure and things were just getting worse as the next movement from the Queen's derriere revealed to them both that Emma was getting wet.

Regina gave a pleased little snicker at that and Emma felt all the blood drain from her face, she could also feel exactly where all of her blood was pulsing to. Emma felt confused and unsure of what to do. Should she move as well? Should she put a stop to this? Oh but it felt so good!

Regina was thoroughly enjoying Emma's warm wetness, which had begun to coat her cheek, and she was wondering how far she could take this before the young woman either rushed out of bed or began to buck her hips to continue the activity.

But then she was reminded of the fact that this was all wrong. Not just because a Queen should not be using her body to pleasure a maid but because the maid in question was a naïve and very sweet  _virgin_. She forced herself to stop grinding her ass into Emma's sex and cheerfully asked "did you sleep well, dear?"

"Y-y-yes thank you" Emma stammered as she felt emotionally relieved but sexually frustrated at the loss of the stimulation.

"Good. As I said yesterday, this sleeping arrangement will be our little secret. As far as anyone knows you still serve your punishment by sleeping on the floor and remember that you are still awaiting my decision on further punishment to rectify your general behaviour. Of course only you and I know that you are also expected to repay me for your crime of watching me climax" the Queen calmly said as she got up and gracefully stretched.

Emma's brain seemed to be pounding but she wasn't sure if that was due to the blood returning to it or the fact that she was now left with lots of questions. The way the Queen spoke of their  _sleeping arrangement_  made it sound like it was an ongoing procedure, would she be allowed into the Queen's bed again? What would the rest of the punishment be? And most of all, what in the name of all the trolls would she have to do to  _repay_  the Queen for watching her pleasuring herself?

Regina looked at the sleepy and utterly befuddled woman in her bed and with a smirk she asked "are you getting up to dress me or do I need to call Mrs Cox in here to deal with you? I'm sure she would have something to say about you being in my bed."

At the mention of that horrible woman Emma bristled visibly and her eyes glittered with resentment. "No, I'm getting up, your Majesty" Emma grumbled and stared menacingly at the Queen before she corrected herself and swallowed her anger.

"You really shouldn't keep suppressing that delicious rage, my dear. I might serve you well" the Queen beamed at her. Then her smile faded as she thought about that this was her usual defence when her father asked her to try and be less angry, she would always tell him that the anger was her fuel and her shield, it was all she had. She looked at the, in comparison to herself, unspoiled woman getting out of her bed and added "just make sure you keep that anger in controlled measurements. Too much anger and you might end up killing people you one day realise you miss."

Regina blinked a few times to clear her clearly mistaken mind from suddenly claiming that there were similarities between Emma's features and those of the late Snow White. She assured herself that it was just the guilt rearing up due to what she had just said.

Emma didn't seem to understand what the Queen was talking about at all but she nodded dutifully and walked over to open the wardrobe to allow the Queen to choose a dress.

The Queen looked at the vast amount of outfits available and thoughtfully said "I think I will go with the all black riding outfit today. I will go see my father and if he is not well enough to be alone I will stay with him today as well. If he is well enough I will take a break this morning and go riding, and you will accompany me."

Emma's jaw dropped and she stuttered "b-but I can't ride, your Majesty!"

This was true. The fairies had been of the same mindset as Regina's mother in as much as that riding was not for proper ladies. Blue had always said "our precious princess is meant for comfortable carriages, not dangerous and dirty  _animals_ " and thereby put a stop to any riding lesson Emma might have otherwise received from the farmhand or the groundskeeper.

Regina was caressing the sleeve of a riding coat she was considering wearing and just hummed "mm, I assumed that was the case. Not to worry, you can walk next to me and hold the basket of refreshments. I have been told by scores of men, hoping to marry the Queen of a well-off kingdom, that I am absolutely enchanting to watch when I ride. Personally I think they just get aroused by watching me straddle a big, muscular stallion but I'm sure that wouldn't have any effect on _you_."

At that Emma nearly dropped the high riding boots she had fetched and that was exactly what the reaction Regina had hoped to get. She really should stop flirting and toying with the maid but it was so much  _fun_ , and judging by the now appearing smile on Emma's face, the young woman was enjoying it too. Regina once again pondered on how different this girl was to the others in her employ. Emma seemed to have a toughness that even her inexperience couldn't overshadow.

Emma had put the boots and the sturdiest of the corsets by the Queen's bed and now she walked over to the Queen. She ran her fingers appreciatively and slowly through Regina's thick, luscious hair as she mumbled "how would your Majesty like your hair today? Something simple yet holdfast to survive the ride?"

Regina gave an almost shocked smile at Emma. The blonde was standing there, playing with her hair as if she was allowed to touch it as she pleased. Just as she was about to scold the girl, Emma let her hand continue to caress after the strands of hair had ended, thus caressing Regina's naked back. The rebuke died on Regina's lips and she chuckled instead. Then she cooed "I spend one night in your arms and you begin to take liberties,  _wench_. Careful, I might punish you by turning you into a toad."

"If you must then of course, but please make it a crab, my Queen. Billy the footman will be most confused" Emma replied with a cheeky grin.

Regina chuckled again and said "I really must get to know you better, mustn't I? There is clearly more to you than meets the eye, do not think I have forgotten that you hinted to your station before coming into my service. You must tell me more when we go for my ride. If we go for my ride, that is. Hurry up and dress me so I can look in on my father and see if he is well enough for me to leave him."

Emma picked up the black riding coat from the closet and then began the washing and dressing procedure with extra haste, if she was honest she was desperate to know how the kind old man was doing as well.


	33. Chapter 33

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you for all your amazing comments and suggestions. Here's today's chapter, it's a slightly longer one. :)

 

"Have you had something to eat this morning, daddy?" Regina asked as she smoothed down the blanket that covered her father where he sat on a divan by a window in his room.

"Yes, I had some more of that quite foul vegetable broth and two duck eggs, which the girl who served me said would be good for me. Strange tasting things, I must say" the tired man replied with a frown.

Regina laughed and added "well I'm glad you have eaten at least. I'll have the maid bring you some honey cakes for later, I know they are your favourites."

"The maid? Do you mean any old maid or do you mean  _your maid_?" Henry replied with a subtle grin.

"Pardon?" Regina replied with a raised eyebrow.

"I was hoping you meant Emma. I would like to speak with her again. She is a lovely girl you know, capable of much more than just being a maid, I'm sure."

"Well, there is nothing wrong with being a maid, daddy" Regina muttered and squirmed in the chair she had placed by her father's divan.

"No, and there was nothing wrong with me being your valet either. But we both know that you had me serve as one partly because I never protected you from your mother and partly because you knew that somewhere in that faraway land, Cora would be livid that her husband was a valet" the old man said completely without malice or rebuke.

When Regina didn't know what to answer and couldn't meet his gaze, he continued "so from that I can only draw the conclusion that you would not consider a servant a good match for yourself. All I ask is that you look at the pretty blonde girl that follows you around like a lovesick puppy and ask yourself if that woman shouldn't be more than just your maid."

Regina stared at him for a long time before giving a reluctant dip of the head as an agreement without committing to anything. Suddenly uncomfortable she unnecessarily dusted off the velvet sleeve of her spotless riding coat.

Henry watched the gesture and changed the topic before his daughter lost her temper or just left the room. "So, I see you're wearing a riding coat. Going out for some fresh air this morning?"

"Yes, I thought I might go for a ride. Deliverance needs his exercise and I could do with getting out of this musty old castle. In fact I… I was planning to bring Emma along for the sojourn" she said with an expression that showed that admitting the last bit was difficult.

Henry just smiled but knew better than to say more about Emma at this point. "Alright. Well it is a lovely day out there, however it must have rained a bit last night, the ground looks a bit muddy from what I can see up here. Be careful, darling girl."

"I'm always careful, daddy. And I'm hardly a girl anymore, don't let the magically youthful face fool you, I am no longer in my spring" Regina replied with a wink at her father.

"Don't say that, that makes me sound ancient! Now go off riding with your spirited yellow rose and leave an old man to rest" he replied with an adoring look at his daughter.

Regina leant in and kissed him tenderly on the cheek before whispering "promise me you'll be alright?"

"Of course, now go on. Oh and don't forget to tell the maid about my honey cakes" Henry said as she shooed his hands towards her.

Regina left the room and as soon as she had taken two steps outside the door she almost walked straight into Emma, who had been pacing outside the doors.

"Well now… that's the second time we have almost collided, you really should be more careful" Regina purred at Emma.

The blonde smiled shyly at her and whispered "but colliding with you has been the most pleasurable experience of my life" while very clearly staring at Regina's lips to show that she was referring to their kiss.

Regina laughed her husky but melodic laugh and said "you cheeky little changeling! Now that's enough of that, let's go to the kitchen to collect a basket of refreshments and to inform them that my father wants honey cakes."

"Oh, honey cakes! They're my favourite, can we have some with us as well?" Emma said before she had time to curb her enthusiasm and remember her place.

Regina stopped in the middle of a step and looked back at the blonde with an incredulous look and an amused grin. "I swear, if you knew each other more, you and my father would get along like two merry pigs at the trough."

"If you are saying that I am like your father then I will take that as a compliment, your Majesty" Emma replied seriously with a haughty look in her eyes.

Regina took a step towards Emma and caressed the blonde braid which matched the braid the wilful maid had made for Regina while seriously stating "as you should,  _Emma_."

At hearing the Queen say her name Emma's cheeks blushed crimson and she tried to hide the huge, silly grin that was threatening to overtake her features. Regina felt happy when Emma failed at that very task.

 

* * *

 

 

"Hurry up, we can't dally here all day" the Queen called from horseback down to Emma who walked beside her.

Regina was riding Deliverance in a slow trot as not to lose Emma and that had been her plan all along. The rest of the plan was to wait until Emma had gotten tired of trying to keep up  _and_  until the girl had gotten a good view of her Queen easily controlling the powerful, black destrier as if it was a cute little pony. Then she would suggest, as a pure act of charity of course, that Emma could ride behind her.

Regina was looking forward to the girl's strong arms around herself once more and if she was honest, she also wanted to feel Emma's centre pushed against her rear again.

Regina was wearing her usual black leather trousers under the extravagant, gold-buttoned riding coat and she had created a less lavish and more mundane riding outfit for Emma consisting of brown leather trousers and a laurel-green riding coat with steel-buttons which covered a simple corset.

It was plain looking enough for Emma to look like a servant but the green of the jacket paid a lovely compliment to the hue of Emma's hair and they were both aware of that. In fact, Emma was hoping they would do this more often so she could wear the comfortable coat as much as possible.

She was also hoping that she would be given the chance to see the Queen on horseback a lot as she truly was sensual and impressive while controlling the huge beast, not that Emma was going to admit that. The Queen was far too convinced of her own beauty and appeal already. No, if she was going to compliment the Queen she was going to try to aim for the woman's personality and actions, not just her appearance.

Emma was getting tired of this endless hurrying along next to the horse though. Her legs cramped and ached in the newly created tan leather boots and she was rapidly running out of energy.

"It would seem that you are lagging behind, dear. Getting tired perchance?" Regina shouted down.

"And if I am, your Majesty? Not much to be done about it, is there? Don't worry, I'll live and I'll make sure  _your refreshments are safe_ " Emma growled, too tired to disguise her lack of patience with the Queen's behaviour.

Regina rode the horse over to a few large rocks and boulders by the path. She pointed out a tall one to Emma and said "stand on that and you'll be able to climb on behind me. I'm sure you can grip that petite basket with one hand and hold on to my waist with the other."

"You mean ride behind you, your Majesty?" Emma asked and felt her heart beginning to pound happily at the thought of being so close to Regina once more.

"No, I meant do a jig on the horse's rump. Yes, of course I meant ride behind me you straw-haired puppet! Come on, we haven't got all day" Regina snapped in mock-annoyance.

Emma nimbly jumped up on the highest boulder and reached over to climb onto the horse. Deliverance whinnied but patiently stood still as Emma tried to manoeuvre herself onto the wide horseback.

When Emma was seated securely she moved as close to the Queen as the saddle would allow and looped an arm around the brunette's slender waist. Then in a slightly shaky voice she murmured "alright, I'm up."

"Yes, I did notice that, dear" Regina replied in her usual acerbic tone. But then she considered the tremble in Emma's voice and how tight the young woman was gripping her and suddenly she felt very protective towards the unsure blonde and added "you're perfectly safe with me, I won't take any risks and we will ride very slowly, alright?"

"Alright" Emma replied curtly and took a few shallow breaths.

Regina let go of the reins with one leather-gloved hand and gently laid it on top of Emma's which was firmly placed on her stomach before adding "if you wish to dismount, just say."

"No. I mean no, thank you, your Majesty. I like a challenge, I just wasn't aware it would be so… high" Emma added and tried to sound normal.

Regina looked over her shoulder until her eyes had locked with the sea-green ones and then smiled affectionately at Emma. All the tension and fear on Emma's face melted away at that and she had no choice but to smile back, she was so lost to this woman she realised. She would follow this woman into any danger, convinced that the magical Queen would protect her no matter what.

She took a deep breath and prepared to tell the Queen who she really was, because surely, those warm brown eyes would never sell her out to the fairies nor hate her for her lie.

"My Queen?" Emma started tentatively as soon as the brunette had begun leading Deliverance into a slow trot again.

"Yes?" Regina replied, now with both hands on the reins and her gaze focussed ahead.

"You wanted to know more about my background today?"

"Yes, I did. Only as much as you are willing to tell of course, your past is your own and as long as it doesn't concern me it can stay hidden if you prefer" Regina replied calmly.

Emma felt shaky and even slightly dizzy, she wondered if she was taking too many shallow little breaths, if it was the height of the horse or if it was just her fear over the Queen's reaction having a physical effect.

"I have told everyone in the castle that I grew up in a cottage with my godmother, who used to be a ladies maid and taught me everything I know. That isn't… quite true" Emma said and heard her own voice hitch before trailing off.

"I see, may I ask why you lied" the Queen retorted and now there was a chill in the older woman's tone.

Emma felt even shakier and more unbalanced on the horse now and she wondered if she should ask the Queen to stop Deliverance so she could get off, but in the end she didn't want to show her frailty. She decided to just continue speaking with as firm a voice as she could muster.

"To hide who I really am. Don't get me wrong, my past is no threat to you in any way! I am sure of that. But I… I'm supposed to be kept under my guardians watch and not allowed to be… free, as I have been while working for you, your Majesty."

"You call being a housebound servant to one of the most feared monarchs and sorceresses of our generation  _being free_?" Regina replied in an incredulous tone.

"Well, yes. In comparison with how I grew up, I feel free in your employ" Emma answered and wished she could make herself say what she needed to say before her nerves completely gave out.

Suddenly Regina could feel that the arm against her waist, and the body pressed as close to her as it could get, was trembling. Why was this young woman so frightened? Was she afraid of the reaction to her story or did she fear these guardians who had locked her up?

One way or another, Regina promised herself that she would do whatever it took to make this easier for the young blonde. In fact she was just about to stop the horse and let them sit down somewhere to continue the discussion when it happened.

Emma's trembling and the fact that she wasn't paying attention caused her to drop the basket in her hand. It hit the horses flank on the way down and then loudly landed on the stony ground beneath them. The bottle of apple cider in the basket fell out and with a loud crash the glass bottle smashed in a million pieces.

Regina didn't know if it was the basket hitting Deliverance's flank or the sound of the basket crashing and the breaking glass but something spooked the horse and made him rear up. Regina might have been able to keep her seat if it hadn't been for Emma flailing in fear and making them both slide off the large horse and straight onto the muddy ground.

Her father had been right, it must have rained last night as the ground they landed on was sodden and slippery.

"Are you alright?" Regina groaned infuriatedly to the blonde next to her in the mud.

"I'm so sorry! Yes, I'm a bit bruised and some mud spattered into my eye, I think. But I'm alright otherwise. What about you, your Majesty? Are you injured?" Emma asked in a panicked voice.

" _I'll live._  However, I am covered in mud and I think I twisted my ankle. The ankle I can heal with magic but I refuse to fix the mud-situation that way. You made me filthy and ruined my nice morning ride, you will see to this mess" Regina growled as she put her hand over her ankle and healed it.

Emma took a moment to calm herself to keep from screaming at the obstinate woman who could make them both injury-free and clean with a wave of her hand, but who clearly was set on sulking instead.

"Of course, my Queen. I will give you a bath when we return to the castle and if you wish it, I will give you some of my rose petal oil afterwards?" Emma bribed the grumpy brunette.

"You'll give me a bath? Do you mean just fill my tub or do you mean  _wash me_?" Regina asked with a sensual smirk.

And just like that the grumpiness is gone, Emma thought. She returned the evil smirk and purred "whatever my Queen desires. I live to serve you, your Majesty."

The Queen waved her hand and the horse was gone. She smiled at Emma and explained "safely home in the stables where no one will throw baskets at him" before waving her hand again and this time transporting them in the purple smoke. When Emma opened her eyes they were in the extravagant bathroom.


	34. Chapter 34

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Here are four new chapters portraying the bath scene and following…. activities. None of it is safe for work and I would recommend you read as much of it as you can in one go as it connects together. Thank you for your patience with this story, getting your lovely reviews/comments and most certainly your messages on tumblr spurs me on to write, write and write.

Regina sauntered over to the copper bathtub and touched the side of it while closing her eyes and mumbling a few indiscernible words, soon the bath was filling with water. Emma looked at it with her mouth slightly ajar and big eyes.

"You can do that?"

"It would appear so, wouldn't it?" Regina said in cutting tones with a clear hint of thinking that Emma was an idiot.

"But... why are people slaving away boiling large amounts of water and bringing it up the many stone steps in pails when you could just do that?" Emma asked with her shock evolving into irritation.

The Queen turned away from the bath and stood glaring at Emma before replying. "Are we really going to go through this every single time?"

Emma felt confused, had they been through this before?

Regina ignored Emma's befuddled expression and continued "I can do a lot of things by magic. Maybe I wouldn't even need staff or much of an army  _but_  there are appearances to keep up. What kind of Queen would I be without a royal guard or without servants? People would just see me as a frightening recluse, like the imp Rumpelstiltskin, I assume you haven't met him?"

Emma shook her head. "When we get back to me telling you about my life I can explain this, but basically, I haven't met anyone. Ever" Emma admitted with her voice once again taking on that trembling tone.

Regina frowned at this but continued her tirade as she could see that the maid was getting uncomfortable again. "Fine, well he does most things himself and that is fine if you are meant to be an evil sorcerer or a monster. I am a Queen, I have to live like one."

Regina looked at the mud on her hand with a frown before adding "besides, if I didn't employ these people and give them something to do with their hands, what would become of them? There is not enough land to farm or enough ale to serve to keep all these people occupied. They may have to carry water up to my bath, but they are clothed, fed and safe and I think you'll find they would complain a lot more if I threw them out and filled my own bath all the time."

Emma had to agree with this but there was still that little voice inside her which dared to whisper  _but you could make it easier for them by heating the water they bring up, yourself_. Wisely, she didn't say that. She was trying the Queen's patience enough already and she rather wanted the focus to be on the bath.

The Queen was still looking at Emma and sighed "well? Are you waiting for these muddy clothes to remove themselves?"

Emma tried to hide a smile at the comment. As she got closer to the Queen she found the sarcastic comments had gone from cruel to just grouchy and she saw that as a huge step forward. She wasn't sure how these things worked in social interaction, but she was quite sure that she was winning the older woman over somehow.

Emma began to undress the Queen, freeing the beautiful body underneath from the mud-caked garments. It was obvious that Emma had more luck in her landing as she was only half as muddy as the brunette was.

As soon as Emma had finished that task and undone the brunette's braid, the Queen turned back to the bath and got in. Emma watched hungrily as the warm water enveloped the divine creature she had just undressed and wondered if the Queen's naked body would ever stop making her breathless.

Regina enjoyed the warm water against her dirty skin and chilled muscles but frowned when she saw the mud coming off in the water. With a wave of her majestic hand, the Queen made the bathwater drain and then refilled it with clean water as she instructed "Emma, go clean your hands and then return with the cleaning salts and a cloth."

Emma did as she was told and after washing the mud off her hands and what little dirt that had sprayed up her arms and in her face, she took the liberty of getting out of the mud-splattered clothes and into just a shift, she was bound to get her clothes wet so she decided against putting a dress on until she had washed herself completely.

She also took her hair out of the braid to check it but it seemed to have survived with only slight mud-stains, she left the long, blonde curls laying softly against her back and shoulders.

Then she returned to the bath tub where the Queen lay with her eyes closed and her face now void of her usual striking make-up. Once again Emma mused on how much kinder the imposing woman looked without her warpaint and daunting outfits.

Emma felt very lucky to get to see both the sexy and stunning appearance that the Queen put on for people and the way she looked when she was like this, undressed, unpainted and unperturbed. The naked woman in front of her laid there completely relaxed with the ends of her dark hair splaying out on the water surface,  _like roots from a tree_ , Emma thought.

The blonde brought the tin box of cleaning salts over and the cloth that the Queen had requested. As to not scare the Queen she softly murmured "your Majesty?"

Regina opened her eyes and looked at the young woman who was standing next to her dressed in only a shift and carrying the items Regina had asked her for. There was something in the way Emma looked at her… was that? Yes, it was affection, and pretty deep by the looks of it. So clearly she wasn't the only one falling then, Regina mused. But was that a good thing or a bad one?

"I see you changed your garb and took your hair down? Probably a good idea" the Queen conceded with just a hint of irritation at being kept waiting.

The blonde nodded shyly and for some strange reason bowed. It made Regina laugh and when Emma looked up she had a look of irritation at being mocked, until she saw that the smile which had reached the Queen's eyes wasn't a mocking one but instead a smile that looked genuine and even caring.

Remembering herself, Regina corrected her features into her usual controlled mask and barked "wet the cloth, sprinkle the cleaning salts over it and then begin washing me. That is after all why we are here. You made me dirty and now you will  _clean me_."

"Yes, my Queen" Emma replied with a smirk that didn't seem very apologetic at all.


	35. Chapter 35

Emma looked down at the olive skin and marvelled at how the copper of the bathtub made it glow golden. It also looked quite clean to Emma now, but she wasn't about to remark on that. She dunked the cloth next to the queen's hip and then sprinkled the salts on it.

Regina took a deep breath to calm herself, she was starting to feel aroused and it would not do to lose control now. She gazed at the woman who looked almost angelic in the midday sun streaming in from the tiny barred window at the top of the wall. Emma's blonde curled moved as she did and glinted in the few persistent rays of sun that reached into the large, dusky bathroom.

As Emma looked up and the light twinkled off her green eyes Regina felt her breath catch in her chest. How could anything be as beautiful as this young woman? How could a world filled with so much darkness and horrors create such a lovely creature, she thought to herself as she admired Emma's almost elven features.

The wet cloth fizzed a bit as the salts penetrated it and Emma watched in fascination before kneeling next to the Queen's tub.

"May I… may I commence, your Majesty?" Emma asked in a cautious voice. She had never done this before and she wasn't sure how she would react when she was so close to the Queen's nakedness.

Regina nodded and laid her head back down onto the lipped edge of the bathtub. Emma started with using her free hand to place the Queen's hair behind her ears so that the long strands spreading around her all tucked in behind the slender shoulders.

Then she brought her hand carrying the cloth into the water. It felt strangely erotic when her hand broke the water surface and entered into the warmth, but with a silent gasp she did her best to ignore the sensual sensation and moved her hand down to gently slide the cloth over the Queen's leg.

As she moved up to the thigh she heard the Queen's breathing become slightly laboured and when the cloth moved to the inside of the thigh she realised that neither of them was breathing. Afraid of the tension that was building, she immediately moved the cloth to the other leg, starting at the calf she gently massaged the skin with the cloth and moved up that leg too.

When she reached the inside of the thigh of this leg she noticed that the Queen was pushing her graceful legs out against the edge of the copper tub, thereby making more room between her thighs.

Emma found herself staring at the alluring dark curls which hid the Queen's treasure trove. She began wondering if the Queen felt the same as she did down there and this led her thoughts to unbidden memories of when she watched the Queen caressing herself.

In sheer panic she dropped the cloth which, heavy with the strange salts, slowly sank down to the bottom of the tub just between the Queen's thighs. The corner of the light grey cloth rested in the dark curls at the Queen's core.

Regina looked at Emma with her eyes cloudy with desire and in her most husky voice she asked "would you like me to fetch that or will you do it?"

Emma's stare moved from the cloth to the Queen's face and back again, the blonde looked like she had been asked to turn the stars into flowers and would be killed if she failed. Emma's panic seemed to be growing and shortly Regina found herself snapped out of her desire with worry for the young woman.

She sat up in the tub and rested her hand on Emma's forearm as she mumbled "my, you really are innocent, aren't you? Don't worry, I'll get it and then you can focus on my arms and we can talk for a while until you get your breath back."

Emma was eternally grateful for the Queen's patience. This was all too much too soon for her and she was filled with so many strange new desires and needs that it made her dizzy. Talking, yes, talking would be good.

"Yes, please, your Majesty. I think that would be wise" Emma agreed in a shaky voice.

Regina picked up the cloth, careful not to touch her by now sensitive and aroused sex, and handed it to Emma. "So, what will we talk about? Honey cakes, that rose petal oil of yours or perhaps the tale of your past that became so rudely interrupted?"

"I… I have loved Honey cakes ever since I was a small girl but I was never allowed too many of them as it would ruin my figure. The rose petal oil was a gift from a cook on my 25th birthday and my past… well my past is… strange. Which is why _I am strange_."

Regina looked at the blonde's hands whose now seemed to be trembling slightly, but the trembling didn't look like the shaking of arousal but more of uneasiness. The sudden discomfort was obvious not just on Emma's face but in her entire body language which had tensed to create the illusion of a violin string tied too tightly.

"I realise…" Regina paused and searched for Emma's gaze, when she found it she continued "I realise that you need to speak of your past in your own time and so I want you to know that I will not push you. I too have memories which do not lend themselves to just being spoken about easily, my husband, my mentor and my mother have left me with scars that I prefer to keep hidden. But when you are ready to talk about it, know that I will always listen and try not to judge."

Emma looked at her with gratitude once more, she knew that the Queen would not be this tender and understanding with others. She wished that she could convey to the Queen that her silence wasn't due to the horrors of her childhood but because she feared the reaction that might come if the truth was revealed.

She no longer worried that the Queen would send her back but she still didn't know how the Queen would feel about the deceit and the fact that the maid currently bathing her was actually of royal birth. It would change everything and Emma couldn't stand the thought of that.

She began to wash the Queen's arm, which lay on the edge of the tub. As the maid came closer to her, Regina reached out her other hand and tenderly caressed a few strands of blonde hair away from Emma's face.

She also took the chance to sneak a look down the young woman's shift into her cleavage, the pert breasts were clearly visible and as Regina watched them she decided one thing, whatever Emma's past included it did not involve childbirth, those perfectly tight and high-held breasts had not given suck to any babes.

But then she remembered that Emma was a virgin so of course she would not have children. The lack of blood to her brain must be getting to her, she realised. Still, it was odd that a woman of 25 summers would not have had a husband and children. Most girls were promised away to a man before they turned nineteen, how had this lovely creature escaped such a fate?

"I will not press you about your past, but may I just ask one question and you can choose whether or not to answer it? I will not be angered with you if you do not answer" Regina queried.

"Yes, of course, my Queen" Emma answered as she dunked the cloth and brought it up to let the water run over the Queen's elegant shoulder.

"You told me that you were... untouched. Does that… include by your own hands?"

Emma blushed once again and kept her eyes trained on the shoulder she was washing as she replied "no, I have pleasured myself more than I probably should have."

"Nonsense! There is no such thing as too much of that, unless you have spent whole days on your back with your fingers going wrinkly from all the wetness" Regina jested.

Emma laughed and the sound rang through the echoing room like music. "No, not that much. I suppose I did it every time I felt sad, or alone or well, aroused. But also as a rebellion."

"Rebellion?" Regina queried curiously.

"Yes, my… guardians… told me that there were parts of my body that was dirty and they should only be touched by my future husband. So when they angered me, which was often, I would retaliate by touching those places as much as I could when they could not see me" Emma replied with venom and finality in her voice.

Regina grinned proudly. "A woman after my own taste" she purred and made Emma blush once more.

Then she couldn't resist, she grabbed Emma's hand with the cloth and brought it down to her breast so that the thin grey cloth was all that was between the soft mound with its achingly hard nipple and Emma's hand. Then she purred "was this one of the dirty parts,  _dear_?"

Emma gasped and involuntarily gave the breast a squeeze which made the Queen moan slightly.

"Yes, yes it was" Emma croaked as she stared transfixed at her cloth-covered hand on the wet breast.

"Would you like to drop the cloth and touch mine?" Regina asked, suddenly completely unbothered with if this woman was a maid, a knight or a damn court jester.

"Yes" Emma growled as her desire overrode her brain and took complete control of her.

Regina gave a moan at the desire in Emma's voice and continued "would you like to kiss them? Maybe even suck on them?"

"Oh yes, please" Emma pleaded as she switched her gaze from the breast that was covered by the cloth and her hand to the one that was completely unobscured. The dusky pink nipple was hard and rested just on the water surface, it looked so inviting and Emma grew desperate to feel it in her mouth.

Regina sat up a little straighter in the tub, which meant that Emma's hand slipped off her breast but also that both her breasts were now out of the water. Emma watched mesmerized as droplets of water fell from the full orbs and hit the water below.

"Go ahead, do what you wish" the Queen whispered in her most husky tones.

Emma licked her lips nervously and very tentatively reached her hand out to place it on the Queen's bosom. She decided on the breast that was nearest and she could hear the blood thundering in her ears as her fingertips made contact with the wet skin.

She carefully caressed the soft sphere in circles until she neared the areola. Regina was smiling and occasionally softly moaning while realising just how much she had wanted to be touched by Emma ever since she met the captivating blonde.

As Emma's fingers reached the slightly bumpy skin of the areola and onto the apex of it the blonde gasped softly at the sight of the already hard nub growing even more erect at her touch.

"It likes you" the Queen purred. "I like you. Put your hand in the water and down between my legs and you'll feel just how much. Even the bathwater can't hide that."

Emma looked tempted but unsure. Regina smiled at her and whispered "it is fine, I know this is all new to you. I won't make you do anything you don't want to. In fact, I won't even touch you, your virginity should be taken by someone you love, not your employer. I am only asking you to touch me, if you wish to, because I think you'll enjoy what you find."

Emma smiled back at her and felt her nerves relax a bit. Her lips were parted and her eyes glittered with arousal and excitement as she gingerly put her hand into the water and then gently placed her fingers in the soft, dark curls.

The Queen gave a guttural moan as the finger slipped past the curls and into the swollen folds beneath. Emma gave an enthusiastic little giggle at how warm and wet it was between the Queen's labias.

It felt amazing! The wetness was so different from the water around her hand, it was thicker and warmer and Emma wondered if it tasted like her own did. She knew from past experiences of undressing the Queen that it smelled lovely, maybe it tasted as good? But then if she brought her fingers up to taste it, the bathwater would wash away all the essence. With a stutter she voiced these thoughts to the Queen.

Regina laughed and brought her hand down in the water to cover Emma's as she purred "get into this water with me to clean off the few mud-stains you have and I promise you that we can go to my bed afterwards and you may both taste it and if you are a very good girl I might even…  _perform_  for you."

Emma made a whimpering sound and just stared open-mouthed at the Queen. Regina laughed again and brought two wet fingers up under the blonde's face to softly push Emma's jaw up and close her mouth with a faint snap.

"Your Queen commands you to get in this bath, Emma Swan. Will you disobey me?" Regina teased in a low voice which reverberated all the way down to Emma's sex.

"Not for all the dwarfs in the mines!" Emma exclaimed and stood up to pull her shift over her head in lightning speed, making Regina give her beautiful laugh once more.


	36. Chapter 36

When Emma was naked Regina surveyed her and realised that the blonde's body was young enough to be impossibly nubile but mature enough to be  _all woman_. Thank all the goblins for that, a mere girl would be rather disappointing, she mused happily and felt filled to the brim with desire.

That wetness between Regina's legs just got worse and she felt her nipples and clitoris grow taut enough to almost be painful as she watched Emma's pale skin decorated with delectable rosey pink sexual areas.

Those nipples, which looked as hard as Regina's own and those pink lips on her beautiful face which matched the lower set of pink lips visible underneath the honey-coloured pubic hair.  _Strawberries, honey and sweetmilk_ , Regina thought and realised just how hard it was going to be to not make love to Emma.

Still unsure of whether or not she was allowed, Emma moved towards the bath to get in. Regina smiled approvingly and that gave Emma the courage she needed to get it. The tub was for one person and the only room Emma could get would be on top and around the Queen's body.

She almost moaned at the warmth of the water and the softness of the female form she was laying her body on. Regina's arms welcomed her in and soon Emma was on top of the Queen and perfectly in her embrace. She also noticed that the Queen was currently wrapping her slender legs around her own slightly longer and more muscular ones.

Emma realised that she had stopped breathing as she got in and took a long, painful breath to fill her agonized lungs. The Queen smiled her captivating smile at her and whispered "that's right sweetling, don't forget to breathe."

That was it, Emma couldn't stop herself, she moved her face a few inches forward and kissed the Queen softly. Surprised but pleased, Regina kissed her back and allowed her tongue to slide over Emma's lower lip. It felt even better than the first kiss they had shared in the Queen's bedchambers, mainly because in this kiss there was no sadness, only desire and affection.

Emma moaned into the kiss and felt her sex twitch at the sensation of the Queen's tongue on her lips. Regina made the most of Emma's moaning by sliding her tongue into the now slightly opened mouth. Emma felt dizzy at how good it felt to feel the Queen inside her body like this. She never knew that people stuck their tongues into each other when they kissed.

Regina realised just that as she noticed Emma not responding. She stopped the kiss and in a voice hoarse from arousal she asked "you've never done this before either, have you? You  _really_  must have been isolated."

Emma looked ashamed and worried and Regina brought her hand up to caress the maid's cheek as reassurance as she whispered "don't worry, we will have lots of fun teaching you. Just do what feels nice and I'll tell you if you do something you may wish to avoid in the future. But I am sure you'll be just fine."

Emma nodded but her green eyes weren't on the Queen's brown ones but on her full lips, which were still quite red despite of the lipstick being gone. Regina realised that the young woman was gathering up her courage to go in for another kiss and she leant back and waited until Emma was ready to make her move.

Soon Emma's pink lips came crashing against her own and with an almost violent thrust Emma's tongue entered Regina's mouth. The Queen was about to tell Emma that she might want to have a little more finesse in the future but she was distracted by how the blonde's tongue seemed to be sliding against her own as if it wanted to mate with it.

Mentally, Regina gave Emma quite a few points for not whisking her tongue around or accidentally licking her teeth or any other novice mistakes people could do with kisses. Emma's only goal seemed to be to meld her tongue with Regina's and it felt incredible.

Soon Regina's hands began to wander over the lithe body on top of hers and she reflexively cupped water in her hands and let it rain down over Emma's toned back.

Emma felt like she was in heaven. If one of the fairies had been there at that point to tell her that her body was only meant to be a source of pleasure for her prince, she would have laughed in their face. Clearly, her body was meant to be fondled by the Queen to give them  _both_  pleasure.

Regina stopped the caressing and the kissing and made Emma whine "more, please, your Majesty… more." The Queen laughed happily and placed her forehead against Emma's and whispered "I would love to, but if I keep touching you… I will not stop until I have claimed your maidenhood."

Emma was about to reply  _have it, I don't need it_  but before she got the chance the Queen continued "I suggest we retire to the bedroom and you can have your promised taste and  _performance_ , if you'd like?"

"Oh please yes, my Queen" Emma replied instantly and unconsciously licked her lips again.

Regina followed suit and gave Emma's lips a quick lick as well before cooing "hold on to me" and waving her hand to transport them to her bed.


	37. Chapter 37

When the purple smoke cleared, Emma saw that they were in the Queen's bedchambers and more importantly on her bed. They were both dripping wet from the bath and she was still perched on top of Regina's body. She moved to get up and accidentally brushed her sex against the Queen's thigh as she left the bed and stood beside it.

Regina moaned at the heat and wetness of Emma and couldn't resist running her finger over the viscous liquid Emma had left on her thigh and bringing it to her mouth. Emma looked embarrassed but hopelessly aroused as she watched the Queen suck her juices off her finger and smile at her.

Then Regina spread her legs and let her rich, low voice whisper "your turn, come here and taste your Queen."

Emma whimpered as much due to the sound as to the possessive look in the Queen's eyes. When she then let her gaze dip lower and saw the olive skin covered in little drops of water, all the way from the perfectly shaped clavicles to the exquisitely sculpted legs, she whimpered once more. But this time it wasn't the whimper of an innocent girl but the whimper of a ravenous woman about to claim what she needed.

Emma got back onto the bed between the Queen's thighs and was careful not to touch the gorgeous woman until permitted. She moved up to the Queen's crotch and was just about to reach her hand out to slide a finger over the slick silk of the Queen's core to get something to taste, when the Queen stopped her with a firm "no."

Emma looked up in surprise and wondered why she was no longer allowed. The Queen smiled at the adorable look of being denied on Emma's face and made her voice softer as she said "touch it with your mouth, not your finger".

Emma looked perplexed. "You mean, kiss it?"

"Yes, my sweet. But kiss it with your tongue, like we did in the bath" Regina replied with a smirk.

Emma still looked a little unsure and in the end Regina shook her head and laughed " _lick it_ , dear."

Emma eyebrows shot up. People did that with their tongue too? Clearly she had been wasting hers on licking frozen lemonade sticks and the batter off spoons all these years.

She leant down and inhaled the strong and spicy aroma of the Queen's desire with true bliss. Then she experimentally stuck her tongue out and let the tip touch the Queen's sensitive and soaked inner lips, when this elicited a moan from the Queen, Emma let her whole tongue slide from as low as it could go up until where the dark curls grew.

Regina gave a loud groan and the breathed "that's enough, do that again and I won't be able to control myself!"

Emma happily let the rich taste on her tongue fill her mouth as she considered doing it again just to make the Queen lose control and take her maidenhood right here and now.

But she was too late as the space between the Queen's legs was now taken up by Regina's hand. She was doing the same movement that she had when Emma had watched her that night, her index- and long finger were moving from sliding roughly over her clit and down towards her entrance, where they slid in without any effort, and then back up again.

Emma got back up from the bed, she wanted to watch the Queen's entire body. She stood at the bottom of the bed and watched the Queen play with herself faster and faster. Regina was moaning now and the sound sent shockwaves through Emma's body, shockwaves which all ended up in her drenched and tingling sex.

It was still a surprise to Emma that the Queen did this in a different way to herself. She wondered if the Queen's method was better but then decided it wouldn't be for her. She had entered herself a few times after the cook explained where babies came from but found it quite uncomfortable and pointless. The Queen however seemed to be enjoying it immensely and was moaning louder now.

She still hadn't climaxed though and Emma bit her lip as she thought that with her method the Queen would surely have finished by now and be on her way to the next round.

Emma didn't know what possessed her or where she got the courage from but she resolutely climbed back onto the bed and moved the Queen's wet fingers away.

Regina got up on her elbows and made a growling sound at the interruption and the evil side in her wanted to scream for Emma's head on a spike. But as soon as Emma started to use her own fingers on the swollen pearl at the apex of Regina's sex the brunette groaned in pleasure and laid back down.

Emma soon realised that she couldn't rub the Queen the way she did herself because of the angle and so she experimented with using her thumb to create the same continuous circles around and onto the swollen nub.

As she did, the Queen started writhing and continued moaning. Emma worried that the sound would alert Agnes or even worse, Mrs Cox. But no one disturbed them and Emma kept letting her thumb play with the wet little pearl as she watched the rest of the silky folds, framed by damp curls. She watched the Queen's opening curiously as she could see a drop of sweet liquid slowly sliding out.

The Queen's moans turned desperate and her hips began to buck to make Emma's movement more intense. Emma was once again at the mercy of her instincts and they were telling her to taste that drop that was just on the verge of leaving the tight hole and spilling out onto the pink silk, so she leaned in and licked the entrance with her tongue while still massaging the Queen's clit.

This pushed Regina over the edge, she didn't know what Emma was doing down there but the feel of the woman's hot breath against her exposed wetness and the curious tongue flicking at her opening was too much for her. She bucked to meet the rubbing of the thumb twice more and then arched her back off the mattress in a forceful orgasm.


	38. Chapter 38

When she came back down Emma was smiling shyly at her and quietly asked "was that good? Was it alright that I touched you, your Majesty?"

"Yes. Yes, Emma. It was… very alright" Regina panted and tried to blink her eyes until her eyesight focused properly again. She laughed and thought to herself  _so much for avoiding being intimate with the maid_.

She heard a sound, it was the sound of something wet. She looked at Emma and noticed that the young woman was subtly letting her fingers make tiny circles around her own clit, but the sound of her copious wetness was giving her away.

Regina snarled "stop that immediately" and Emma's hand froze over her sex. The blonde was terrified that the Queen had come to her senses and realised the folly in engaging in forbidden activities with servants.

Luckily she turned out to be quite wrong as Regina followed her statement with a tired smirk and the words "that makes it twice I have performed for you. Now it's your turn, you were so eager to lend me a hand and show me your expertise? Well now is the time to  _demonstrate your skill._  You will lay on this bed and pleasure yourself for me."

Wordlessly they changed places and when Emma was laid out on the bed, exposed to her Queen, she couldn't help but smile at that the Queen had arranged this so that they would both get pleasure and satisfaction but without her actually taking Emma's virginity. Clearly the older woman felt very strongly that this shouldn't happen until Emma was ready for it and truly in love.

There was only one problem, Emma was pretty sure she was both those things right now.

Letting her arousal guide her, Emma caressed her breasts and got an appreciative humming in response from the Queen. She slid her hands down her stomach, realising that the bathwater had dried on her skin now, and then into her dark-blonde curls.

"Spread your legs wider, touch yourself just right and then make yourself come gloriously for your Queen" Regina hissed while staring fixedly at Emma's soaked sex.

Emma instantly began to follow the commands and rubbed her clit with fervour and laboured breathing.

Regina took it all in and watched all of Emma's body, she saw the toes curl in pleasure, the slight twitches in her calves and the way the muscles played in the forearm connected to the hand that was massaging the pleasure centre. Both most of all she saw that rosey little pussy with its perfect petals almost calling to her.

Without thinking she moved closer to Emma's sex and inhaled the scent of it deeply. Emma saw it and immediately begged "please, touch me."

Regina looked at her dejectedly and gave a sad smile as she said "I can't. I am not the right person to be your first. It should be someone you love, someone good and preferably someone your own age, my sweet."

Emma forced her hand to still and sat up, still panting and with her heart pounding hard. She looked deep into the warm brown eyes and whispered "I want it to be you. If I am honest, I have waited so long that I was planning on giving it away to the first man who wasn't abhorrent and who asked. But now, now that I have met you… I know that would have been a grave mistake."

Bold from desire and emotion Emma moved in for a soft kiss before continuing "It was meant for you. You are meant to be my first. I am in love with you, this feeling can't be anything else. And you  _are good_ , at least you are good to me and that is an incredibly good start in my book. And age? Who cares about age or gender or that you aren't a prince here to ask for my hand? You are just right. You are just right for me and you are the only one I want to be my first. Now please touch me… because if you don't… I'll tell people you tried to turn me into a crab."

Regina laughed at that and leant in for another kiss, this one a little deeper and more sensual.

"Alright, my beautiful one. Lay back down again" Regina whispered reverently.

Emma obeyed and soon she felt the Queen lay down on top of her and the feeling of the soft warm skin on top of hers made her gasp with pleasure. Regina kissed her tenderly and ran her hands up Emma's hips, over her sides and up her sculpted arms.

Then she began to pepper wet little kisses on Emma's neck and shoulders before moving down to her breasts. She covered them in adoring kisses and Emma whimpered happily at the fantastic sensation. When Regina's mouth closed on a nipple Emma almost screamed at the wonderful feeling of her hardness sliding into the warm, wet mouth.

Simultaneously, Regina's fingers began to gently investigate Emma's soaked folds and found her clit, she rubbed it gently but firmly and Emma realised that she wasn't going to last long.

Oh but it was marvellous. The Queen was being gentle with her but still determined, she wanted to make Emma come fast and hard and her movements showed it. That combination was all that had been good in Emma's fantasies about that faceless presence taking her, but it was also a million times better because it was real and because it  _her darling Queen_.

Soon Regina released the nipple from her mouth and began to travel down Emma's abdomen and down to those honey-coloured curls. She nuzzled into the damp hair and Emma giggled, making Regina look up at her and return the smile. Then she went back to the waiting and tingling centre of Emma's body and began to mercilessly lick and kiss it.

Emma jolted off the bed with surprise and pleasure and she gave another scream. Regina held Emma's hips down and kept licking hungrily at the swollen clit, which was peeking out of its hood and clearly ready to make Emma experience her first orgasm caused by someone else.

Soon Emma was coming so hard that her eyes rolled back and showed nothing but the whites. She screamed  _YES_  a few times before her words turned into a senseless moan while the waves of orgasm kept hitting her body.

When Emma had finished and laid still on the bed Regina gave the twitching, pretty little pussy an affectionate kiss and then moved up Emma's body to kiss the younger woman.

Emma sniggered at the taste of herself in someone else's mouth and the Queen, understanding what was so funny, refrained from sarcastic comments and just rolled her eyes.

They kept kissing and giving each other intimate little smiles and touches until Emma's hand found Regina's sex again and began to play with it blissfully. They made love again and then once more for luck until they fell asleep, this time with the Queen spooning Emma and softly murmuring "let's sleep" into the blonde and hopelessly tangled hair.

The afternoon sun beamed in on the two naked women as they laid there exhausted, sated, carefree and as physically close to each other as they could get. Emma replied "good idea, my Queen. Sweet dreams."

The last thing Emma thought before falling asleep with the largest smile of her life plastered on her face was  _I don't even know her name… and I couldn't care less._


	39. Chapter 39

It was the birds singing outside as the sun slowly set which woke Regina from the exhaustion-induced post-coital four hour nap.

She could feel warmth under her hand, warmth and movement. As she moved her fingers slightly she realised that her hand was resting on Emma's stomach and that the movement was the younger woman's breathing, it was calm and steady and Regina smiled at that even a sleeping Emma could make her feel this tranquil.

As she lay there, trying to wake up but also wishing to stay in the blissful calm of the embrace, the memories of the day all clicked into place in her mind. She remembered every sensation, every scent, every sound, every touch and every taste as if they had just occurred.

Unable to stop herself, Regina burrowed her face into the blonde curls, Emma's hair smelled like forest to her for some reason and she loved it. Love. The blonde had said that she was in love. Regina frowned into the light tresses and worried about that, they had only known each other for a short time and the young woman was so naïve and inexperienced. But there  _was_  something between them and yes… it did feel like love.

Oh but love never worked out for Regina. It always hurt and scarred her and then disappeared, if that was to happen between them, would Emma survive it? Regina took another deep breath and filled her lungs with Emma's scent before carefully disentangling herself from the blonde.

When Regina was out of bed she dressed and applied her makeup by magic and then transported herself to her father's room.

Henry was still sitting on his divan by the window and reading a book. He looked up in surprise as she arrived but there was no rebuke for the woman who just appeared without an invitation, just a happy smile.

She ran to him and kneeled beside him while throwing her arms around his neck. "Daddy, I think I have done something very bad."

Henry frowned and pictured villages of peasants cut down or war declarations to other realms, but his daughter wasn't like that anymore. Her rage and bloodlust had calmed down and the people had stopped rebelling, everything was relatively peaceful now,  _wasn't it_?

"Alright, my dear. What is it? You can tell me anything" he reassured and gave her a tired smile.

"I… I… took Emma to bed. Well, in some ways she took me to bed I think. But I should have been stronger and stopped it. Now she says she loves me and I am terrified! I know I'll end up hurting her or at least disappointing her" she croaked quickly with a voice that broke on almost every other word.

Henry laughed quietly. "Is that all? My child, that was bound to happen sooner or later. Even old eyes like mine could see how you looked at each other. Being afraid of hurting her is good, it means that she matters to you and that what you have is worth fighting for. You've changed from the creature that hurts people and she can help you grow even more. When it comes to disappointing people… the only one you ever really disappointed was Cora, and everyone disappoints her."

"That's not quite true, is it? I have done plenty of disappointing other people, like the imp for example. He, like mother, always thought I was weak" she hissed with unshed tears brimming in her eyes.

"Oh him, what does his opinion matter? I don't know many things, my dear. I am just a weakling who never protected you from your mother like I should, simply because I couldn't stand disappointing her either and because I was afraid. But I do know this, finding someone who can help you be a better person is a true treasure indeed. Don't throw that away because of what your mother or Rumpelstiltskin would think. Be good to her and love her and everything else will solve itself" he reassured her while petting her cheek.

"She's my  _maid_ " Regina added to the list of problems in a rather lacklustre fashion.

"Yes, and your mother was a miller's daughter when I married her. We have been over this, my sweet. Give the wench another job and she will no longer be a maid, you are the Queen, you are always telling me that this means you can do whatever you please. So make her something else than a maid" he shrugged as if it was the easiest thing in the world.

Regina sniffed and laughed. Then she took his hand and squeezed it before almost whispering "do you really think I won't hurt her? I'm a  _villain_ , daddy."

He squeezed her hand back and promised "you won't hurt her, not intentionally anyway, simply because you are so frightened to do it. Unintentionally, well who can say? But that is life, we never know what is going to happen. You are not a villain anymore, my darling girl. You're just a woman in love. Enjoy it!"

Regina got up and brushed her knees off reflexively as she asked "anyway, how are you feeling?"

"Tired but happy, happy that you gave in to the spirited maid. Now go tell her you love her and that she is getting a new job. Oh and tell that I want to kiss her hand next time I see her" he added with a wink.

Regina rolled her eyes at her father and gave him a tender kiss on the cheek before transporting back to the bedroom.

When the purple smoke cleared she saw Emma standing by the bed, she was wearing Regina's black shift and making the bed with angry, swift motions.

"Good evening, my sweet" Regina beamed as she walked up to Emma.

Emma turned and stared at her before hissing "you were gone. We shared all that and then I woke up to find you gone,  _your Majesty_." The last words came out of the blonde's mouth as if they were venom.

"Oh. Yes, I do apologize for that. I hoped you might sleep longer. I woke up and… needed to talk to someone about what had happened between us. So I went to see my father" Regina explained as she gracefully sat down on the edge of the bed.

"You don't think you could have spoken  _to me_? Because I woke up terrified that you had left. That you regretted what had happened. That you were going to punish me, throw me out or hate me or… something of that ilk" Emma burst out with a furrowed brow.

Regina grabbed Emma's wrist, stopping her from fussing with the pillows. When Emma finally met Regina's gaze the brunette gave her a faint smile and spoke.

"I went to see my father because I worried that I had made a mistake. Not because of you or my lack of feelings for you, but because I worried that I might hurt you. And it would seem I already have. Be patient with me, Emma. I don't know how to love very well" Regina finished and slowly released Emma's wrist.

The blonde stared at her and with fear spreading through her veins Regina counted the seconds of silence in her head.  _One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six_ …

"You… You love me?" Emma asked with a smile so big and earnest that it threatened to take over her entire face.

Regina laughed softly as relief flooded her system and smiled back as she griped "it seems I do. The mighty Queen with her powerful dark magic falls head over heels for her new sassy maid. How is that for a fairytale?"

"Sounds really good to me" Emma grinned. "But only if the sassy maid gets a kiss."

Regina shook her head in incredulity and stood up to kiss her new lover. When Emma felt the warm, full lips against her own it was as if her worries and fears from when she woke up alone all faded away. She felt convinced that the older woman in her arms knew how to love perfectly well, they both just needed to figure out how to make this work,

With a shiver of fear Emma realised that this included telling the Queen who she really was and she promised herself she would do it in the morning. All she wanted now was an evening and night of safety and affection… oh, and hopefully a meal as her stomach was beginning to grumble loudly.

Regina broke off the kiss and with raised eyebrows she sneered "sounds like we better get some supper served before you begin to devour the furniture."

Emma let her hands, which had been around the Queen's waist, drop to her behind and squeeze the softness of it through the dress. "The only thing in here risking being devoured by me is you, your Majesty."

Using the Queen's moniker reminded Emma that she didn't know the Queen's name and she looked down and bit her lip as she thought about how to ask without it sounding odd.

Regina put two fingers under her chin and lifted Emma's face to lock eyes with her before softly cooing "what is it?"

"I was just… realising that we know so little about each other" Emma replied with a slight shrug.

"That problem can be handled easily. I'll arrange for a simple supper to be brought up here and we can talk while we eat. How does that sound, dear?" Regina asked with a reassuring smile.

Emma nodded and stole another kiss, this time she couldn't stop herself from allowing her tongue to slide up and trace the slight scar over the Queen's lip. Regina noticed goose bumps form on her arms as she felt the soft tongue slide over the tiny slit in her skin.  _Maybe supper would have to wait a while longer_ , she thought as she claimed the blonde's mouth and pulled the maid tightly against her body.


	40. Chapter 40

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you again for all the support and for waiting so patiently for the big reveal of their secrets. The lovely 2Facemyfate and a few others have mentioned that I have teased you more with the reveal of who they are than with their falling in love and that is true, that was the plan from the start. It was never meant as a teaser or cliffhanger though, I wanted them to face who the other one is when they had already developed feelings for each other and without saying too much… we are reaching that point now. Thank you for reading and commenting!

 

Once more morning came and Emma woke up confused, for a moment she didn't know where she was or what that taste was in her mouth could be. When her eyes opened she realised that she was sleeping with her head on the Queen's stomach and she grinned to herself.

That taste in her mouth was the Queen's wetness, she remembered smugly. Suddenly she recalled waking up just as dawn was breaking and feeling the soft naked body against her own and just knowing that she had to pleasure her lover.

She needed to hear the brunette moan her name and beg for release again, who knew that such a powerful and imposing creature could be so marvellous at begging? But then Emma realised that this fact was her own personal treasure and that if she ever told anyone, the Queen would probably spank her to death!

She recalled their dinner in detail as well. They had sat on the bed talking and feasting on apple cider, dark and syrupy bread, leek and cabbage soup and cold meats. There had also been some leftover roast swan but Emma had declined with a frown and explained how much swans meant to her and why.

After that Regina had pushed the dish away and smilingly promised to never eat it again, quickly adding that she would just have all the other birds of the kingdom slaughtered instead and Emma could explain to the poor turkeys why they all had to die. Emma had just rolled her eyes at the Queen's sarcastic attempts at wit and taken another bite of bread.

They had talked, yes. But about little things, things they liked or hated and insignificant childhood memories. Emma had kept her promise to herself, the secret would be revealed today and no matter what happened… they would always have last night as a perfect memory.

There was a knock on the door which woke Regina and she sat up, making Emma fall off her and nearly roll off the bed.

"Your Majesty! You have a very impatient visitor! It's… It's the Blue Fairy" the unmistakable voice of Mrs Cox shouted through the door.

Regina growled in fury and sleepily stood up. With a snarl on her lips, which should have been frightening but for some reason was maddeningly arousing to Emma, the Queen waved her hand and her blue and black dress with the high collar and perfect make-up was now in place.

Then Emma realised what Mrs Cox had said…  _The Blue Fairy._  Here. Now. Suddenly there was a large knot in Emma's stomach and she almost threw herself at the Queen, begging her not to go.

But she didn't know what to say… telling the Queen who she was would be hard enough as it was but with the added pressure of knowing that she had to hurry and that the Blue Fairy was waiting, no, she just couldn't do it. Maybe it would be ok? It was last time when the fairies sent their envoys, she tried to reassure herself.

Regina didn't know which made her angrier, the fact that the Blue Fairy was here or that she had interrupted her sleep. She had slept so soundly and had such lovely dreams, all circling on things she wanted to do with Emma. To then be woken by such an unwelcome guest and have to leave the warm bed containing her gorgeous and  _surprisingly talented_  new lover, it was not to be forgiven!

"I'm going to eat that pesky dragonfly for breakfast" she growled and then turned her snarl into a smile as she saw Emma and added "and then I'll come up here to have another serving of  _hot Swan_."

Even in her panic Emma had to smile at the comment, before meeting the Queen she never would have understood the double entendre but now she was learning new things at an alarming speed. She just hoped that wasn't all about to end.

Regina walked over and took Emma's face in her hands and kissed the blonde longingly and tenderly, when the kiss ended Emma looked into the stunning brown eyes and whispered "please don't stop loving me, no matter what."

Regina kissed her again, but this time more chastely, and promised "I won't as long as you don't,  _dearest heart_ " before leaving with her heels beating an angry rhythm down the stone steps.

Emma sat down on the bed and stared at her hands. Suddenly she felt that need to flee again but she swallowed it down. She didn't have to leave, the Queen loved her and would never betray her secret nor throw her out for lying, would she?

 

* * *

 

 

Regina was led to the Blue Fairy by a nervous footman. The dainty little fairy was slowly flying in circles over a nest of tables in the front drawing room, Regina assumed that this was the fairy equivalent of pacing back and forth, either that or the powerhungry little do-gooder had finally lost her marbles.

The footman was just about to introduce Regina with her full title when the leader of the fairies hissed "yes, yes… I know very well who she is. Leave us!"

Regina regally inclined her head towards the footman to let him know that it was alright to follow that order. All of a sudden Regina felt less angry, the fairy's fury and impatience amused Regina and so she didn't have to fight to produce the superior smirk that adorned her features.

She focused her penetrating stare at the fluttering creature in powder blue and drawled "Blue. How nice to see you, dear! Come by to borrow a cup of treacle? Or do you little rainbow-bees only sip nectar from flowers?"

Blue glared at her and clearly tried to keep her temper and angelic demeanour in control as she replied "you know why I am here. We have searched for the princess everywhere and the only place we have been unable to establish that she isn't, is in your castle. Oh, and I know what you did to the envoys we sent… that in itself smacks of guilt."

" _That_  smacks of annoyance due to you sending halfbreeds here to do your bidding. Maybe if you had come yourself and not sent your peculiar brutes to threaten me, I might have been more forthcoming" Regina drawled with her haughty smirk in place.

"Enough of this! If you do not tell us what you know about the princess we will have to declare war!" Blue said and almost shook with badly hidden rage.

Regina gave her most villainous laugh. "Oh war? I'm trembling with fear. Whatever will I do when my castle gets peppered with colourful little dragonflies? Those stains never come out!"

Blue flew so close to Regina's face that Regina had to blink from the fear of getting a blue wing in her eyes. "The sooner you take this matter seriously, the sooner we can continue to ignore and avoid each other" the flitting creature said with a clenched jaw.

Regina held her hands out and said "by all means, I'll play nice if that is what it takes to get you out of my home."

Then she walked over to an ornate chair by the newly mended window and sat down in a leisurely pace, she was very happy to let the Blue Fairy wait.

"Alright, let's talk. How are you? Anything interesting happened lately? Loose anything perhaps? Something… oh I don't know… about my height, spoilt, overly cheerful and with raven-black hair?" Regina drawled and grinned smugly at the fairy who was now trying to appear calm.

Blue sniffed. "If you mean the princess and actual heir to the throne that you are unlawfully possessing, then yes. But your facts are incorrect. She is not spoilt or cheerful, just… odd. She's taller than you and blonde and most of all, we didn't lose her…. She was taken!"

"Taken? Oh my, well who could possibly want to steal a blonde and apparently odd escaped princess? I'm sure that…." Regina trailed off in sudden shock. Suddenly she felt like the air had turned poisonous around her.  _No, it couldn't be._

"Are you alright, your Majesty" the Blue Fairy huffed indifferently.

"What? I…I… Yes. May I ask what the princess' name is?" Regina asked with as much equilibrium as she could muster.

The Blue Fairy glared at her for a couple of seconds before replying "Emma. Not that it is any of your business. But then I suppose you know that as you have kidnapped her, unless she refused to tell you her name?"

_No, she told me her name alright, she told me quite a few things come to think of it. I just didn't realise what it meant,_  Regina thought to herself as she felt her heart turn to lead.

Regina couldn't stand to be in the room with the annoying creature any longer. She had to get some air, she had to breathe! She barked "we will have to continue this discussion another day, I am quite busy" and with a magical wave she transported herself away to the back of her vast gardens.

She had thought of going to her rooms but then Emma would be there. Emma, oh her darling Emma. That was all over now, wasn't it? How could the young woman ever love the person who was in a way responsible for her parent's brutal murders? What kind of sick game was destiny playing to place the daughter of Snow White so firmly in Regina's heart? Was it a punishment? Was it some kind of sign?

Suddenly she covered her eyes and gave a mirthless laugh as the image of her mother appeared in her mind.  _Oh mother, looks like I finally fell in love with a blue-blooded royal. Happy now?_


	41. Chapter 41

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Yes, this hurts as much to write as it does to read. Just remember, what I break I will fix again. (If you need to vent or shout at me I'm Violetscentedwriter on Tumblr and VioletscentedSQ on Twitter.)

Nervously Emma was trying to keep busy by placing Regina's boots in order in her large wardrobes. She had just arranged them in order of height when she heard a knock on the door.

"Emma, are you in there?" Agnes' voice could be heard half-whispering.

With a sigh Emma went to open the door. She had missed Agnes but right now she was in no mood to chat with anyone.

Agnes stared skittishly into the room as soon as the doors opened and gave what sounded like a little hiccup.

"It's fine. She's not here, Agnes" Emma intoned and made sure not to roll her eyes as the girl's fear.

"Oh good! Are you alright?" Agnes asked with a friendly smile.

Emma considered telling Agnes the truth, that she had fallen in love with the Queen and then slept with her and that she was actually an orphaned princess robbed of her rightful throne in a kingdom ruled by some old, horrible Queen far away. But no, she couldn't. If for no other reason than because it sounded ridiculous.

"Yes, I'm fine. How are you?" Emma replied with a fake smile.

"Bored! Ever since the Queen decided to keep you with her at all times for punishment I have been out of work! I can't get in here to clean, or to pick up jewellery or boots that need attention. I can't even clean out the grate for the fire in the mornings!" Agnes replied with a disbelieving expression.

"You're complaining about  _that_?" Emma asked curiously.

Agnes was just about to explain what she meant when she felt a strong gust of air right over her shoulder. As she turned to examine what it was she saw the Queen in all her dressed up glory standing there staring at Emma.

Agnes wanted to say  _Oh pardon, your Majesty but you frightened me something terrible. Good thing I wasn't standing a few inches back or you would have poofed yourself into me. Wouldn't that have been hilarious?_

What she did say was "eek".

Regina stopped her intense staring at Emma to glance confusedly at the girl in front of her. Agnes felt like she actually grew physically shorter under the imposing woman's gaze and meekly repeated her "eek".

Emma sighed "Agnes, I think you need to leave me and the Queen alone."

Regina turned away from the girl and focused back on Emma as she distractedly mumbled "yes, Alice, run along."

Agnes was just about to correct the Queen about her name but then realised that it would probably come out  _eek_  and so instead took her leave gratefully.

As soon as Agnes had left, the two women stared at each other in silence. It was the kind of silence that spoke volumes and yet answered nothing at all.

"So… do we have anything to discuss" Emma asked with the tiniest of hope that the Blue Fairy might not have explained who she was. But she doubted that she would be as lucky as she was last time, the way the Queen looked at her showed that something was  _terribly wrong_.

"Yes. I'm afraid we do,  _Princess Emma_ " Regina replied with a sad smile.

This confused Emma. Why wasn't Regina angry or at least confrontational? Why did she just look at her so sadly?

"I'm… I'm sorry. I meant to tell you today, I really did. Well, I have been trying to tell you the last couple of days but the time was never right and I feared that you would shun me if you knew the truth. I feared you might make me go back to the fairies to be displayed as some prize for a prince. Please tell you won't, don't make me leave you" Emma said with her voice breaking and her eyes brimming with unshed tears.

 _I shouldn't cry_ , she thought. The Queen liked her strength and so she shouldn't cry. Suddenly she saw that the Queen's eyes were wet too, but otherwise her face was set in a stiff mask that conveyed nothing.

"Are you sure you do not wish to go back? I know the fairies are dreadful little beasts but as you say, soon a prince will come and be absolutely amazed by your spirit and your beauty. He'll whisk you away and give you a better life than the one of a maid working for your worst… well, for me" Regina said in a strangely absent voice.

"No! No, please don't ask me to do that. I would rather be a maid with you than be royalty with some prince. You are all I think about, you are all that matters, when you are in the room it is like I cannot even see other people. Please don't take that away from me, don't make me go to some kingdom far away and try to reclaim a throne I never wanted from some old hag. You are what I want, you're everything I ever dreamed of" Emma whimpered as she fought off the tears in a losing battle.

Regina once again had that feeling of the air leaving the room.  _'Kingdom far away? Some hag?' She doesn't know. She doesn't know what I did to her parents or that it is her throne I am on. She doesn't even know that I was married to her grandfather._ What should she do?

The decision was made for her. Emma couldn't stand feeling so vulnerable anymore and so she ran to her newfound source of safety and comfort, she ran straight to the Queen and threw her arms around her and held the brunette tightly.

Regina felt as if her heart was breaking more and more with every beat it took. How could she console the woman she had wronged so much? And yet she had to, she knew she was all Emma had when it came to physical comfort. Confused and self-loathing she put her arms around Emma and held her with all of her might.

Soon she felt something wet on her neck and realised that it was the tears spilling from Emma's eyes. What was she meant to do with this? If she told Emma who she was and what she had done she would crush both of their newfound happiness. They had both finally let someone into their lives, how cruel would it be to ruin that now.

Was there a way of not telling Emma and spending her life making up for the lie?  _No, the truth always comes out_ , she thought bitterly and remembered the secret that Snow White had been unable to keep.

She turned her head and kissed Emma's hair absentmindedly. She could smell roses and realised that Emma must have applied that oil of hers when she was up here alone. Regina now remembered that Emma said it had been a gift from a cook, clearly it was the cook working at the fairies castle.

It was so strange that Emma had grown up and lived so close all this time, no wonder that Emma assumed that her rightful kingdom was far away.  _What kind of cretins hide a precious heir to a stolen throne right next to the person who stole it?_ Regina wondered as she once again realised how much she abhorred the fairies. But then it had worked, although that was mostly due to the fact that Regina had never searched for the orphaned princess.

Suddenly Regina felt the soft touch of Emma's lips on her neck and heard the blonde sob "do you forgive me for not telling you? I swear I was going to do it today!"

Regina almost laughed even though it wasn't remotely funny, would  _she_  forgive  _Emma_? Oh, if the younger woman only knew how much there was to forgive between them.

She stroked Emma's hair and swallowed painfully before croaking "of course, my dearest. I understand why you didn't tell me. It might have made a few things easier if you had, but I understand why you didn't. You don't need to beg my forgiveness."

Emma gave a tiny relieved laugh and sniffed. Regina waved her hand and a lace handkerchief appeared magically in her hand, she caressed Emma's hair until the blonde looked up and then she offered her the handkerchief.

Emma took it and blew her nose. Regina looked at her face and it crushed her how beautiful the blonde was, even now with her eyes red and puffy and her face stained with tears.

Emma looked at her with careful optimism at having been forgiven so easily. Regina knew with all certainty that she was about to lose Emma, as soon as the secret was out Emma wouldn't look at her like she did now, she would look at Regina like everyone else did, like she was a monster.

All Regina had to do now was find a way to tell Emma and then try to find a way to continue on with her life when Emma ran in horror and betrayal. Both things seemed impossible to do. Suddenly Regina felt a need to speak to her father. Maybe he would know how to tell Emma in the least painful way?

Regina held Emma by the shoulders and kissed her forehead before saying" I think you need to rest, my sweet."

Emma nodded and realised that the tension, fear and then crying had made her muscles feel as if she had been slaving in the garden all day again. "You're right. Would you come with me to bed? To sleep I mean, not to… you know. "

Regina smiled sadly as she was just now realising that she would never make love to this amazing woman again. If only the Blue Fairy had never come! Or if she at least would have given them a few days of happiness before she barged in here with her ugly truth.

"I promised my father I would come see him about this time today. If you go rest I promise to come up and hold you when I have spoken to him. Would that be acceptable?" Regina asked tenderly and tried to keep the fact that she felt like she was drowning in grief away from her expression and tone.

"Yes, that would be fine. You seem quite subdued, are you disappointed with me?" Emma dared to ask.

"No! Oh no, my love. In fact, I am proud of you for turning into such an amazing woman after being raised by sparkly moths with the capacity to love of a toadstool. I am only a little surprised still. I will gather my thoughts as I speak to my father and then I'll be fine when I come back" Regina said with a pained smile.

Emma nodded, still unsure, but went to the bed that they now shared and crawled in under the covers. Before waving her hand to transport to her father's room, Regina walked over and kissed Emma's pink lips lovingly before whispering "I will see you soon, close your eyes and have sweet dreams."


	42. Chapter 42

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: I'd like to thank the brilliant Curvypragmatist for talking this through with me and having some really good ideas. Thank you to everyone who has commented and given me advice in comments/reviews as well!

"Daddy!" Regina cried as soon as she was in his room.

Henry was standing by one of the many bookshelves in his room and thumbing through a book with stippled pictures of birds. When he noticed that his daughter had, once again, let herself into his room without invitation he was about to show her a picture of a bird with an extraordinarily blue beak that he thought he had just spotted outside his window.

That plan vanished the second he saw her distraught face and heard her desperate cry. "My darling girl, what's wrong?" Henry replied with genuine worry in his tone.

She rushed into his arms and he held her close and gently patted her back, waiting patiently for her to calm down enough to tell him what was wrong. He assumed it was something regarding Emma Swan, nothing else got his daughter this distraught.

After a moment Regina told him the whole story of her meeting with the Blue Fairy, Emma's true identity and her fear of losing Emma. His kind face frowned more and more the further into the story she got. When she finished he shook his head sadly and muttered "how tragic."

Hearing that, Regina could no longer stop a single tear from silently falling down her cheek. Then Henry leaned his head to the side and looked out the window as he mused "however, I think you are assuming too much when you say that she will surely leave you. Remember that this girl never knew or loved her parents but she knows you and from what you say, she clearly loves you."

Regina gave a mirthless laugh. "Yes, well, that will end soon enough when she knows what I have done."

"My dear child, don't you think she has heard the horror stories about you while working in this castle? That other maid, the frightened little one, she gossips! Emma knows that you used to be angrier and… dangerous than you are now. She will know that you have changed, and anyway, you did not order the murder of Snow White and Prince Charming. Henric did that on his own accord" Henry reassured her.

"Yes but daddy, I wanted Snow gone so badly. I wanted my revenge! I might as well have killed her! And then I forced Emma to grow up with  _the fairies_ , how could she ever forgive me for that?" Regina sighed in a defeated manner.

"I don't know. Maybe you should ask her?" Henry replied simply.

"What? What do you mean?" Regina snapped.

"I mean… ask her how she can ever forgive you. You will have to tell her who you are and what happened, otherwise you can never have a true relationship. And maybe, just maybe, when you do… Emma Swan will surprise you! Doesn't she usually?" Henry added with a small smile.

"Well yes, but I don't usually tell her that I usurped her throne" Regina groaned.

Henry shrugged. "No, but you said that she didn't want her throne, or a prince. She said she wanted you and you don't know if she still will when she knows about you until you give her all the facts. Tell her that you have regretted Snow White's death, as I have seen that you do. Tell her that you are sorry that she had to grow up with the fairies but that in the end  _it brought you two together._ Now go talk to her right away before your mind makes this worse than it is!"

Regina stared at him through tears and wondered if there was any chance of hope. One way or another, he was right, she would have to tell Emma and let the young woman decide what would happen next.

She fell into his arms again and for the millionth time she thanked the stars that she never had to enact the curse and take her father's heart. After having kissed his cheek she mumbled that she had to get back to Emma and performed the required gesture with her hands to vanish in her usual purple smoke.

When she was gone Henry looked at the book in his hands and saw that he was trembling slightly. He hadn't admitted this to his daughter, but he was frightened. If Emma left, would Regina resort back to the only way she knew how to deal with pain – darkness? If so, would he be able to stop her before more people died?

Still, he felt that it was a good sign that Regina's first reaction after having been deceived was to worry about losing Emma. He had known the blonde would be good for her, now if the stars would just align to keep the two women together they would all be fine. He put the book back on the shelf and sat down to try to calm his trembling hands and worried mind.

When the Queen returned to her bedchambers she saw Emma lying on her stomach with her hands under her head on the pillow, the blonde was clearly sleeping soundly and just as Regina arrived she gave a little mix between a sigh and a giggle. That was the endearing noise Regina had mentioned to Emma after that first night when the blonde slept on her floor.

The Queen watched the presently tranquil beauty for a few moments, studying her face and her body and trying to notice everything about the blonde to keep it all as cherished memories before she would lose Emma forever.

Then with a pained expression Regina walked to the bed and softly crawled up behind Emma and gently laid her head between Emma's shoulder blades. Sleeping deeply as usual, Emma didn't even notice but just continued her deep breaths and occasional sleep sounds. Regina put her hand on the blonde's side and even through the dress she could feel Emma's warmth.

 _When she wakes up I'll tell her. I will give her all the facts and then… almost certainly watch her begin to hate me_ , Regina thought as another lone tear fell from her eye and was sucked up by the fabric of Emma's dress.


	43. Chapter 43

It was about an hour later when Emma woke. She felt a weight on her back and as she lifted her head she saw a glimpse of the Queen. Emma smiled hugely, rubbed her eyes which were still sore from the crying and mumbled "hello, beautiful."

Regina sat up so Emma wasn't pinned underneath her and when Emma sat up too, Regina caressed her cheek with her fingertips and softly jested "tell me, did you take this many naps when you were with the fairies?"

"Ha. My whole life felt like a long nap when I was with the fairies, now, with you, I'm fully awake" Emma replied with a smile.

Regina began to smile back but the smile soon died on her lips, she sighed and corrected a few loose strands of her hair.

"Speaking of your time with the fairies, there is something I have to tell you. I finally know who you are but you don't know who I am." Regina finally announced and looked down at her hands in her lap.

"I know some things. I know you have a dark past, I know you have killed, tortured and frightened people because someone did something terrible to you. Or at least that is what Agnes has told me. But then she also said that she thought that the terrible thing might have been that an ogre ate your mother so I don't know how much of that is true" Emma said with a frown.

Regina couldn't help but laugh. "No, my mother is alive. Or at least I think she is. She's in a place called Wonderland but let's not talk about her. Or actually, I suppose we might as well start with her" Regina shrugged with a tense expression.

And so the story began. Regina told Emma how her mother had treated her and then what had happened to her first love and Emma's mother's role in the whole tragic saga. She left no details out, explaining everything about King Leopold, the genie and finally the curse. When she came to the part about what Henric had done to Emma's parents she found herself having trouble with her words.

"So… he came to me and told me that he had rid me of my enemies by murdering them. He didn't know about Maleficent teaching me that death isn't the best revenge but that letting someone live in misery is. Emma, I swear that was what I was going to do!" Regina almost looked up at Emma but in the last moment she realised that she couldn't continue if she did.

With her eyes still fixed on her own hands she continued "I was going to make her live her life being lost in the same way I was…. without love, meaning, happiness or even hope. I had decided that I didn't want to kill Snow or her oaf of a husband, but Henric didn't know that and so he… slayed them. He and his men left you in your crib and they saw the fairies come for you as they left" Regina finished and tried to prepare for Emma's reaction.

She finally steeled herself and looked up at Emma. What she was met with when she looked into the sea-green eyes was confusion and disbelief.

Emma seemed to be struggling with how to speak. "You… you are the Evil Queen who killed my parents and took my rightful throne?"

Regina cleared her throat to keep her voice in check as she answered "yes. Not quite the old hag you were told of I assume, as you bedded me." The last words came out sarcastically and Regina regretted saying them immediately. This wasn't the time for self-effacing quips.

Emma however ignored it and seemed lost at what new revelation she should inquire about first. This was so painful and so confusing and she felt like she was slowly losing grip on her own life.

"S-so… you didn't want my parents dead?" Emma stammered without looking at Regina.

At the vulnerability in Emma's voice Regina's already broken heart gave another twinge of pain.

"No. I'm afraid I celebrated at the time, because as you said, I was another person then. Pain and grief combined with how I was raised made me twisted and cruel. But even then, I felt that it was wrong. Especially the manner of their deaths, Snow was at worst a betrayer and at best a spoiled little brat, but she deserved better than to be killed in her bed so soon after giving birth. I would never have requested that to happen. To this day I wish I would have punished Henric, but he was only trying to… help" Regina finished with a helpless shrug.

" _Help?_  Help? Killing my parents and leaving me an orphan was just him doing you a little  _favour_ was it?" Emma almost shouted with her cheeks colouring.

 _It's starting,_ Regina realised. _She's beginning to hate me._ "No, that wasn't what I meant. I wasn't defending him, in fact I am not defending me either, if it wasn't for me your parents would have been alive and they would have raised you. You would have grown up a happy little princess, riding horses and attending balls. I… took that from you and I know that no apology will ever be enough. I just want you to know that I never meant for this to happen."

Emma stood up, her chest heaving with her hard breathing and rage. "Well it did. Why didn't the fairies tell me that the Evil Queen lived on the other side of the forest? Why hasn't anyone told me any of this before? How am I supposed to trust you of all people? You have caused the worst things in my life and then you  _made me love you and bedded me._ Was that a revenge too? Was that the final part of your plan?" Emma shrieked at her.

"No! Of course not! Emma, I didn't know who you were. I never meant to…" Regina never finished the sentence because at that point Emma had rushed for the door and her steps could be heard running down the stairs.

Regina considered running after her. There was still so much more to say and to explain. She wanted to tell Emma how she had changed her and that she would do whatever it took to make sure that the rest of Emma's life was happy, safe and filled with love. Even if she had to do it from a distance because Emma didn't want to see her.

But what was the point? What reason did Emma have to listen to her of all people?

Regina gave a scream of rage and helplessness and waves of purple magic streamed out of her hands and caused objects to fall from the table beside her. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered right now but how she had hurt the one person, except for her father, whom she wanted to protect.


	44. Chapter 44

Emma ran fast without purpose or direction, her thoughts beating in her head as her heart beat in her chest. She needed to get away, she needed to be safe somewhere.

She ran straight into the footman who had brought her to Mrs Cox on her first day in the castle and apologised before running in another direction, she thought she could hear the footman shout something to someone else, something about fetching someone but she didn't stop to listen.

When Emma reached the lower levels of the castle she began to worry that she was getting lost. Wouldn't that be something, lost and starving to death in the castle which was her birthright? Absentmindedly she wondered if the dungeons were down here, Agnes had said that the Queen had kept a great many people locked inside them.

"Emma, stop running! I just had scones and if you make me keep chasing you like this I am likely to see them again" someone panted from behind her.

Emma turned and saw Billy coming rushing towards her. Now she realised what that footman had shouted, it had been  _someone fetch Billy_. Emma took a deep breath to try and calm herself from her panic and her mad dash.

"I'm not going back to her! Not yet, I need to think" Emma warned the young man, who presently had this acne covered cheeks blooming red from the running.

"I have no idea what has happened but I guess the Queen did something to you, then? I just know that Perkins said you were running amok in the castle and had to be stopped" he panted.

"She… she killed my parents" Emma said quietly and slumped down on the cold, hard floor.

Billy looked confused for a minute and mumbled "I know the Blue Fairy was here today but she seems too small to be your mother." Then he crouched down and began to pat Emma's back soothingly if awkwardly.

Emma gave a hollow chuckle. "Well she and the other fairies did raise me, but she is not my mother. I didn't mean today, my parents were killed when I was a baby and the man who did it worked for the Queen. I am the rightful heir to this throne… I think, it gets confusing now because the Queen was married to my grandfather, so maybe I don't get the throne until she dies? Oh I don't know. I don't know anything anymore, Billy. I just know that it hurts" she croaked.

He patted her back still and sat down properly next to her, when he did that she could see that he still had scone crumbs on the collar of his shirt and without thinking she brushed them off for him.

With a hoarse voice Emma continued "I am not even sure if I am angry because she is the reason my parents died or because I had to grow up with the fairies. The latter I think, because I never knew my parents. They are just names I have heard, heroes in stories the fairies told me. The villain was always the Evil Queen of course, but now… oh Billy… now I'm in love with her" Emma sobbed and covered her face with her hands.

Billy had enough sense to know that Emma might not want to be held by someone she didn't know very well, so he just kept patting her back and let his other hand rest on her shoulder. She cried for a while and they sat there, still as statues, as she did.

When her sobs quieted down she cleared her throat and mumbled "I'm sorry, I usually never cry but now I have done it twice today, I must be becoming weaker."

Billy looked thoughtful for a while and then quietly said "the Queen once told me that her mother always says that love is weakness. I told her that was stupid because the love I have for my little sister was all that kept me strong when we were growing up."

Emma looked curiously at him and remembered Henry telling her about Billy and his sister being thrown out by their father and the Queen taking them in. "Are you… close to the Queen?" Emma asked him.

He let go of her shoulder and looked up at the ceiling. "No. Not really. She took pity on me and helped me once and then she took us in but that was all. Emma, whatever the Queen has done and who she used to be, she does have the capacity for great kindness. She saved my life and made me who I wanted to be without any gain for herself."

Emma looked at him searchingly for a moment. "Can I ask how? Knowing something good that she has done would really make me feel better, but if it's private then never mind" Emma asked softly before taking the handkerchief he was now offering her.

He nodded absently and seemed to weigh his words before speaking. "Have you ever heard of people being born wrong?"

Emma frowned. "What, you mean coming out of your mother upside down?"

He chuckled. "No. Just coming out and being in the wrong body, that's what I did. I came into this world as a girl but as I grew up I never felt like one. I would see the boys in the village play and chat and I felt more like them. I would see my mother, before she died, and my father and I knew that I was always going to be more like my father."

Emma couldn't imagine what that felt like but she could see that it was hard for Billy to talk about it so she didn't interrupt to ask questions.

"When I grew older I started to fall in love with girls. I spoke to my sister about it and we knew that it would make me the laughing stock of the village. But it wasn't something unheard of, at that time there was gossip that the Queen had taken some duchess as a lover and so it wasn't something too foreign to people. What on the other hand was a problem was that when I imagined bedding them, I always imagined I was a man while doing it. I had spied on my parents and I knew what that would look like" Billy said while blushing.

Emma just kept quiet and let him continue at his own pace, hearing his story was making her own tale seem less crushing and impossible.

"When my mother had passed my papa would go away to the market for a few weeks every six months to show off his wares and skills, he was a blacksmith, and he would leave me and my sister home alone. Whenever he did I would borrow his clothes, even though they still hung loose over my scrawny girl's body. No one in the village seemed to mind much and no one ever told my father, probably because they knew that he wanted me to be a proper girl and marry his future apprentice" Billy sighed.

"So… he came home early and caught you in his clothes?" Emma asked kindly.

"Well yes, but not just that. He came home and found me in the middle of a fight with the neighbour's boy. I was wearing papa's clothes and the boy had started mocking me for it, I saw red and punched him and then the brawl started. Papa pulled me out of the punch-up, dragged me inside and beat me bloody. After that he would beat me every time I did something that wasn't  _ladylike_."

Emma clenched her fists and felt the anger rising in her chest. How could any parent do something like that?

"One day I had enough and when he was beating me with his belt I turned around and punched him. That was the final straw for him and so he threw me out. I had walked aimlessly for about five minutes until my little sister sidled up next to me with her apron pockets filled with bread and what copper coins she could find around the house. I tried to make her go back but she was determined to come with me no matter where I went" he said with a slight smile at the memory.

"We walked as long as we could until I, tired from the beating and the walking, fell over in the middle of a road. I could hear hooves as I fell but then everything went black. When I woke I was in this castle and my sister told me that the Queen had been in the carriage which almost ran me over. At first the Queen was angry because we had interrupted her journey but then my sister explained everything to her."

He chuckled and started to really belly laugh. Emma felt confused at why he was laughing so at such a sad story.

"What's so funny?" Emma queried.

"When I woke up, the Queen had not just taking me and my sister in and given me a position as a junior footman and my sister a job as a kitchen maid. She had also done something to my body so that where there used to be tiny breasts and a woman's sex… there was now a flat chest and a… willy. A fully functional and real trouser snake! She did something while I was passed out and I woke up a boy! I cannot explain how surprised and ecstatic I was when I noticed!"

Emma was gobsmacked, she stared at Billy and tried to make sense of all of this.

He was still grinning and looking up at the ceiling. As an afterthought he added "I told Agnes about it. That I used to be a girl, I mean. She said that was good because all men deserved to know what horror a girl goes through when she has her moonsblood. She's something else, that girl."

Billy looked at Emma and saw her shocked face. He patted her shoulder and said "I know this is all a lot to take in on top of all the revelations you have had today. But I wanted you to hear the story so you would know that the Queen does have a good heart, it's just been hidden under pain, rage and bitterness for a long time."

Emma looked unconvinced so Billy continued "for what it's worth, she looks at you like you're the most precious thing she has ever seen, all the castle is gossiping about that, so I'm sure that she would never ever do anything to hurt you again. She can't change the past and give you your parents back or make sure you didn't have to be brought up by strange butterflies with heads and bosoms, but she might just be able to give you a better future."

Emma looked at him and felt like something was finally making sense. But before she went to confront the Queen again there was someone else she needed to talk to. She kissed Billy on the cheek and thanked him before hurrying off again.

Billy just sighed after her and shook his head as he said "I bet there won't be any scones left now" to himself and slowly got up from the cold floor.


	45. Chapter 45

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Yep, we all know whose council Emma is going to seek about this. But first, let's check in on Regina, shall we?

The knock on the door to Regina's chambers made her start, she had been completely engrossed in her thoughts about Emma. She was worried, devastatingly worried about where the blonde was going but she didn't dare to chase her as that might just make her run further. But that insistent knocking wouldn't allow her to focus on her troubled thoughts.

"Yes, what is it" she snapped in the direction of the large wooden doors.

Opening the doors and striding in with head held high was Joan Cox. She curtsied to Regina but the Queen could see that the serious look on the woman's face meant that she was not here on some simple routine errand.

Regina sighed deeply and snarled "what is wrong, now?"

"Emma Swan, your Majesty" Mrs Cox replied tersely.

Regina looked up immediately. "What about her?"

"Firstly, she is running like a frightened animal all over the castle. I was made to understand that she would be kept by your side to not interrupt the running of your castle any further? Secondly, I escorted the Blue Fairy out after you… departed. She asked me to take a message for you and inform you that unless Miss Swan is returned to them before nightfall she will return with every fairy and soldier she can find. Although… she did not refer to your Majesty's new maid as Emma Swan, she called her  _the Princess_  and had to describe the girl to me before I knew of whom she was speaking."

Silence fell in the room and the two women looked at each other, judging the situation and any possible outcomes.

"It would seem that we both know exactly who Emma Swan is now, then. I would, however, not fret about either your first point or your second one as I doubt very much that  _the Princess_  will be staying in this castle for much longer" Regina growled.

Mrs Cox sniffed. "I do not wish to be presumptuous or overstep my mark, your Majesty. But I must say that I am glad that she will be leaving us. That young woman was not suited for service, she could not take orders or keep her nose out of other people's business. It makes complete sense that she would be a princess from the spoiled and self-righteous behaviour she displayed."

"Really?" Regina asked with her lips forming in to her frequent snarl of controlled fury.

"Yes, your Majesty. I am sure you had your… reasons for choosing that particular young woman to serve you and I have never questioned your decisions before, however in this case I do believe that she was ill-suited for the job. I would even be so bold as to say that taking the girl's side in a quarrel with a loyal and long-serving subject like Mr Hollins was a mistake" Mrs Cox replied and kept her head held high and her grey eyes fixed on the Queen's brown ones. Clearly this was a woman who was taking a stand.

She continued, "as someone who has served you in every way I could for over twenty years I must say that I would like to either be asked my opinion on the next maid or at least allowed to train the girl to live up to our standards. This castle runs like clockwork despite a smaller workforce than many other castles of its size throughout this realm and the reason for that is the clear hierarchy and the stern rules in play. Without the employees respecting me I cannot to my job."

"Oh? Is that a fact?"

"Yes" Mrs Cox stated simply and clearly, but her confidence was belied by the clenching of her jaw and the slight twitch at the corner of her mouth.

"Well, I'm afraid you are in bad luck,  _Joan._  Any other day I might have conceded that you have a point and I might even have allowed you to get away with your disrespectful way of setting terms for whom I can hire, if you apologized that is. But today is a bad day to try and tell me what mistakes I have made, to make demands and most of all to criticise Emma Swan" Regina drawled in a tone that could have been mistaken for almost civil if it wasn't for the iciness at the end and the snarl on her face.

The Queen walked up to Mrs Cox until they were face to face and quietly but clearly said, "you want respect? I will give you the respect of not turning you into something unfortunate but instead just asking you to collect your things and leave. It would seem that I have two positions to fill on my staff after today."

"Pardon? Your Majesty! You can't do that!"

"Oh really? That's funny because I am certain that  _I just did._  Now leave before I decide to be less lenient" Regina barked and opened the large doors by magic.

* * *

Henry was back on his divan and had been trying to spot that bird with the blue beak again, to no avail, for quite a while now. Suddenly there was a knock on the door and he mumbled "yes, come in" while still squinting to see into the dense foliage that was part of the royal maze outside his window.

He heard the doors opening and careful steps coming closer. There was also the sound of someone breathing hard but trying not to let it show.

Henry breathed in that strange flowery smell that always lingered on the blonde whom had stolen his daughter's heart and chuckled. "That rapid breathing tells me that you have either been running or that you mistake me for my daughter, young lady. Or should that be  _Princess_?"

Emma smiled at the stupid joke as she heard the kind tone in it and knew that the old man was trying to take her mind off her troubles.

"I'm afraid I have to disappoint you by saying that my breathing is due to running and not an infatuation with your entire bloodline" she jested back.

Henry laughed and replied "trust me, my child. Not even in my younger and more handsome days would I have believed I had even a smidgeon of hope with you. You, like that product of my bloodline we mentioned, are both hopelessly lost in each other. I can only sit back and bask in the glow of your devotion."

"I'm afraid that devotion has run into a snag" Emma croaked and shifted her footing.

"Yes, I know. My little gem was in here, with her heart bleeding all over my floor, the second she realised who you are. She was sure she had lost you. Has she?"

"Would I be here if she had?" Emma asked simply.

"No, I suppose you wouldn't. Unless you heard that I had Honeycakes and came here to purloin them?" Henry said with a mischievous grin.

Emma laughed and then thought about it and mumbled "well, if you have one extra I suppose I should eat something, my eating habits have been disrupted quite a bit these last few days."

"Oh my darling girl! You should have said! There is a plate of little honeycakes and some sweetened milk on that table, help yourself" he immediately replied while pointing to the table in question.

"I thought you were meant to be eating things like vegetable broth and medicinal herbs?" Emma asked with a worried look.

"Oh, I do that too. But sometimes you have to… cleanse the palate" he informed sagely.

"I see" Emma said and picked up a round honeycake and tore a bit of it off and plonked into her mouth. It was still slightly warm and the sweet fluffiness of the dough filled her mouth and made her realise that she had probably been hungry for quite a while.

Henry sat silently while Emma devoured the treat and then had another and then a third. After that he smiled hugely at her and said "good! Now have some milk to drink and then tell me how we can make things right between you and that daughter of mine."


	46. Chapter 46

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you once again for reading and for your amazing comments/reviews! If you want to follow me on twitter I'm VioletscentedSQ and on Tumblr I'm Violetscentedwriter. If you do you'll not just see when I update (and sometimes little write ups of the chapters) but also stuff like the honey cake recipe I posted with yesterday's chapter.

Emma's steps felt a little bit lighter as she walked up the stairs to the Queen's bedchambers. But the fear was still there and so was the doubt, was this the right thing to do? Once again, Emma felt that her lack of human interaction had left her unprepared for this situation. In the back of her mind was a scrap of doubt which loudly claimed that maybe she was clinging to the Queen because she was the first and only person who had said they loved her and that hurt.

Before Emma reached the door Agnes whispered "pssst" from the entrance to their room. Emma looked at her and gave an emotionally drained smile.

"Agnes, why are you whispering? The Queen is in her rooms and I very much doubt she can hear you."

"You never know. She might show up in a cloud of smoke and hex me or something… now come here and look at this!"

Emma looked at the door that kept her from the woman she needed to speak to but decided to follow Agnes, with the caveat of that if it took too long she would abandon the girl and seek out the Queen.  _Her Queen._

When Emma entered their little room she saw a beautiful and sizable leather satchel with a swan wearing a royal crown engraved into the front laying on her bed. Emma went to open it and found that it contained the things that she had brought with her to the castle but also a set of sensible and yet elegant clothes, a much larger bottle of rose petal oil than the one she had brought and a hefty purse of gold coins and a handful of gemstones.

Next to it was the laurel-green riding coat that the Queen had created for their ride, but now it too had a crowned swan on it, embroidered in white next to the lapel on the left side _. It will sit right over my heart and remind me of what I was born to be and what I became_ , Emma thought.

"That's enough coins to buy yourself a small village!" Agnes exclaimed and looked surprised when Emma seemed more interested in the riding coat.

"I… I… need to speak to the Queen," Emma croaked quietly.

"Alright. Um, Emma… I don't know what has happened today, but I wish you to know that no matter what happens, I will be on your side. I've never met anyone like you and I would very much like us to be friends. Maybe that way I can be like you one day, you know… brave. What I'm trying to say, is that you are not alone," Agnes finished while blushing profusely.

Emma hesitated, she didn't know if this was a situation where a hug would be acceptable or if that would be seen as a romantic gesture? But Agnes looked so unsure of herself that Emma threw caution to the wind and went over to embrace the younger woman. Agnes gave her a quick hug back and whispered "please don't leave".

Emma broke off the hug and grinned as she replied "no way! This castle hasn't seen half of the trouble I can cause!"

They both laughed and Emma gave Agnes' shoulder a quick squeeze before heading out the door and towards the doors that would lead her to the person she both wanted to see more than anything and yet dreaded to meet.

She knocked quietly and heard a voice, which was much less authoritative than usual, say "come in".

Emma pushed the doors open and felt fear blooming in her stomach, spreading its icy tendrils throughout her torso. She had no idea how this would play out, she knew what she wanted to say but she didn't know what replies she could get nor how her emotions might betray her.

The doors closed behind her with a deafening finality. There was no escape now, but surprisingly they both felt that this was a good thing. No matter what would happen in this moment, it would be important and inevitable. Forgiveness or the last goodbye, there were no other outcomes for these strong and painfully stubborn women and they both knew it.

When Emma looked at the Queen and her impossibly sad expression she remembered that scrap of doubt which worried that she was just sticking to this woman because she was the only one she had, was terribly wrong. If Emma had known a thousand humans and they all professed their love to her, she knew that the one in front of her now would always be the one that spoke to her, the one that reached through all the debris and found  _her_.

"What was that satchel about?" Emma asked with a forced strictness in her voice.

Regina let her hand grab onto the back of the chair in front of her for support and replied steadily "a parting gift. I cannot come with you to keep you safe and I know you will not allow me to assign an escort for your future travels but at least I can give you a few things to make your travels more agreeable."

Emma clenched her jaw before opening it to speak. "So, you're just going to let me leave?"

"I would never force you to stay and I cannot imagine that you would ever want to, after all that I have done," the Queen replied firmly but dejectedly.

"You know, I was going to leave. I wanted to start running again the second I heard that the Blue Fairy was here and ever since my every thought has been followed by the solution of running away. When I lived with the fairies I always wanted to run away, partly because they suffocated me but mainly because they made me feel powerless. I was never allowed to choose my life," Emma said and tried to make her words so clear that they would register perfectly with the Queen, bridging the gap of their different experiences and personalities.

When the Queen just looked at her questioningly, Emma continued "running away from them and choosing to take your offer of working here gave me the first taste of having power over my own life. I felt like that power was taken away from me again when I found out what you had done. I know you aren't that person anymore and I know why you became that way, so I can forgive you and I can continue to live with the consequences of your actions but I cannot stay if I keep feeling this sense of being powerless."

"You mean you believe that the satchel was me deciding what you should do?" The Queen gave a mirthless laugh. "It was me trying to do what little pathetic thing I could to help you in your future. Leaving or staying, it could never be anything but your choice. A spirit like yours cannot be contained, Emma Swan, and I pity anyone who would even try. Even as my maid I allowed you to do pretty much what you wanted and I paid the price for it in the loss of a housekeeper."

"Housekeeper? You mean Mrs Cox? She's gone?" Emma's question was followed by a ghost of a smile on her lips.

"Yes. She had the audacity to question my decisions and to criticize you and I have to admit… she caught me at a bad time. So I dismissed her", Regina finished as if it was an irrelevant fact.

Emma shifted her footing, she needed to get them back into what they were meant to be talking about. She studied the Queen and watched as the hand gripping the chair tightened and the knuckles began to whiten. Emma realised how frightened the usually daunting Queen was and she desperately wanted to calm her but how?

Regina saw Emma watching her hand and knew that her feelings must be written all over her body language, why couldn't she control her emotions around this damned wench? She found herself looking into Emma's eyes to find that tranquillity and safety that the blonde always gave her. Their eyes met and the contact was maintained for a few seconds as they both memorised every shift and speck of colour in each other's eyes.

Suddenly sure of what to say Emma remarked "when you look at me like you are right now, I feel powerful. I feel like I have met the strongest and most interesting creature in the world and found that she sees me like an equal. When you show me how much I mean to you and that I broke down your walls I feel powerful, I feel like I matter. I am no longer a puppet to be used, I am  _me_ ", Emma shook her head and mumbled "I'm sure that doesn't make sense to you."

Regina laughed. "Doesn't make sense to me? Oh dearest, if there is anyone who knows what it feels like to be a puppet used to do others will, it's me. And I know the sweet release of breaking out of that as well. I thought that when I became what they call the  _Evil Queen_  I was taking back my freedom. But in later years I have wondered if that wasn't actually what my puppeteers wanted all along. But you… they never counted on  _you_. I chose you, or rather my heart did in strict disagreement with my common sense. With you lies my true freedom."

Emma smiled faintly. "And mine with you, and my love for you is me taking control over my life. I am not sure how we can be together but I know that I… want to be", Emma finished with her eyes clear and determined.

At that, the last of Regina's controlled mask fell away and she sniffed and laughed at the same time, with true joy in her smile now. "Thank you", she whispered.

Emma smiled back, unsure of what to do, wanting to run to the beautiful woman in front of her but at the same time afraid of seeming like she had forgiven too easily, she wanted to keep her pride and show that this situation would not just go away because she stayed.

Emma settled for smiling and saying "don't thank me, thank your father. We spent a long time talking today and he was the one who made me realise that I wasn't really grieving for parents that I had never known or sulking because I had to grow up with the fairies, I made peace with that many years ago, but because of my feelings of powerlessness and constantly being kept in the dark were awakened."

"Oh, Emma. I am sorry for that, I know that my apologies are mere drops in a vast ocean of pain and confusion for you but I still want you to know that I am sorry for all of this. If you stay, or if you let me come with you wherever you wish to go, I promise I will dedicate my life to making it up to you by making you happy in any way I can", the Queen promised seriously.

"And when it comes to my father", Regina's smiled again while a perfectly round tear made its way down her powdered cheek. "I will thank him, in fact I'll build him a monument if he wishes. I'm so glad you spoke to him, Emma. I robbed you of your parents and while I can never make up for that, allow me to offer you to share my father. He's a soft-hearted, lily-livered old man who doesn't look after himself but he is all I have and all I can offer you."

Emma looked at her with wide eyes at the derogative comments about the gentle man with his honey cakes and kind words.

"Don't say that! He's wonderful! He even pointed out that if you had not done the things you did, you and I might never have met and I might never have experienced this kind of love. He's a sweetheart and the best advisor I have ever had. But I cannot accept him as my father, not because I don't care for him, but because if he was both your father and mine it would probably be immoral of me to do this..." Emma said breathlessly before crossing the room and latching onto to Regina's face to kiss her deeply.


	47. Chapter 47

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Warning, this is a rather steamy chapter. (Not safe for work.) There will be a continuation of this in tomorrow's chapter, I am just too exhausted to write more tonight.

 

Regina returned the kiss with fervour, hardly believing her luck. The kiss began as a way to express their devotion and wish to reconnect but the feeling of the other woman's warm mouth soon drove them towards arousal. The kiss changed and grew almost painfully erotic.

Emma could feel a pounding between her legs, as if her sex was calling out for Regina. She began to run her hands over the older woman's curves and Regina moved accordingly to allow Emma access wherever she wished to touch.  _She's submitting to me_ , Emma realised in shock.

Emma had never thought that this would happen, but the Queen was letting her touch her in any way she pleased and even guide the kiss as she wished. Now  _this_  was what power felt like!

Regina could feel Emma grow more confident with every kiss and every grope. She had consciously chosen to give Emma power. If this miracle of a woman wanted to stay with her and love her after all that had happened, she deserved to get whatever she wanted from her lover.

Regina shifted a little as Emma took a very rough grip on her breast through her dress, her first instinct was to tell the wench off and put her in her place, but then… it felt surprisingly good and she relaxed back down and just moaned into Emma's mouth.

Emma almost slammed Regina against the nearest wall and then broke off the kiss and panted "let's get a few things in order before we are no longer able to speak. You see I have not forgiven you completely, that will be a longer process, and so I expect a few changes to be made to begin the procedure."

With her sex brimming with moisture and her heart beating Emma's name in a rapid pace Regina felt like she would concede to anything, but to show that she would not agree to be blackmailed she kept her voice from sounding too submissive as she replied "very well, name your terms."

Emma sucked a soft earlobe into her mouth and didn't even mind that it came with a silver earring. She released it as soon as she heard the Queen moan and then replied "I'm not going to be your maid anymore"

"Agreed. You were terrible at it anyway", Regina panted as Emma's hand had hiked her dress up and was now making its way up her thigh.

Feeling the soft, tan skin under her palm Emma moaned her next words, "secondly, I expect my act of disobedience and it's punishment to be forgotten, I want a clean slate."

A part of Regina wanted to ague this point as she had been really looking forward to spanking Emma's gorgeous derriere, but she reasoned that she would find another opportunity for that later and just panted "yes, of course."

Emma's hand was traveling up the outside of Regina's thigh, aiming for her hip and then her ass. But then the thick, multi-layered and currently bunched up dress was denying her access any further up. Emma gave an impatient growl with made Regina smirk before purring "would you like the dress gone, my love?"

Through gritted teeth and with desire dripping from every syllable Emma replied "yes, every piece of clothing has to come off NOW." With extra flourish Regina gave her magical hand wave and she was now naked, the wall behind her and Emma in front of her making her trapped, exposed and completely happy with the situation.

Emma began to place needy kisses on Regina's neck and shoulders and the older woman almost cried out at how good it felt, which was why she whimpered desperately when Emma stopped to whisper "I want to rule this kingdom by your side, my dearest. You know how to run a kingdom so you can see me merely as a sounding board and perhaps a sort of… moral compass? I could have the title of  _Queen's consort_."

At the last words Emma stopped speaking to fill her mouth with one of Regina's breasts. She sucked on as much of it as she could before honing in on the erect nipple and suckling it like her life depended on it. Regina groaned and bit her lip at the pleasure tinted with just a modicum of pain.

"No", Regina breathed. Emma stopped her ministrations on the dusky pink nipple and looked up at her lover, terrified that the Queen wasn't enjoying herself. Regina gave a devilish smirk and purred "not  _no_  to what your greedy little mouth is doing, nor to you ruling this kingdom with me…  _no_  to you being called the Queen's consort. You are a Queen in my eyes and so that should be your official title and moniker."

Emma grinned at her and gave the nipple a teasing lick before playfully replying "won't that be confusing? Having two Queen's in a kingdom? How will we know which Queen people are referring to?"

Regina extended her chest so that the nipple brushed Emma's lips and the blonde obligingly returned to sucking on it. When her moaning had subsided enough Regina replied "easy, we just add our first names to our titles. Thereby making you Queen Emma. We'll have a coronation ceremony and everything."

Emma released the hard nipple to say "accepted. However, I don't know if you are aware of this… but I don't know your first name."

Regina gave a shocked look and a mock-gasp. "You mean you have been allowing a woman to do all sorts of filthy things to your body without even learning her name? Why,  _Emma Swan_ , you little trollop!"

Emma just glared at her while continuing her treatment of the by now swollen and sensitive nipple and Regina caressed her hair and cooed "maybe you can coax my name out of me in bed today."

Emma let go of the nipple and as she smiled and looked the Queen right in the eye and snarled "oh, I would count on that,  _your Majesty_ " and twisted the sore nipple with her fingers until Regina screamed and slapped her hand.

Emma laughed mischievously and Regina faked a baleful glance at her before kissing the blonde's breath away.


	48. Chapter 48

They had ended up in bed and by now they were both naked. Emma was running her hands over Regina's body as if she had never seen anything so beautiful before and the Queen laid back in the plush bed, allowing the blonde to venerate her with touch.

The blonde reached down to kiss each of the Queen's nipples in turn and even nipped at them gently before releasing them. Then Emma remembered the kissing technique the Queen had taught her and swiftly buried her face in the silky, brown curls to taste the wetness they obscured.

Words fell from Regina's lips without her mind seeming to form them. Words about how she had been sure she had lost Emma and how she didn't know how she could have coped with that loss. Words about heartache and grief and words that breached through the emotions and went down into the more base feelings of pleasure she was receiving from Emma's mouth.

Emma let the words reach her and tried to understand as much of them as she could while being absorbed by the taste and feel of the Queen's slick velvet. Soon the Queen's words turned to moans and whimpers and as Regina's thighs squeezed around Emma's head she could feel the brunette's body shake as the orgasm flooded her system.

Emma kept licking as the Queen's body relaxed, she wondered if she should stop but then the beauty underneath her didn't seem to complain about the curious, if somewhat tired, tongue that kept licking and flicking at the sensitive parts of her. Emma just wanted more, she wanted more of the Queen's noises, more of the Queen's climaxes and most of all she wanted to fill her stomach with the Queen's wetness.

Soon Regina couldn't stop herself from hoarsely whimpering "put your fingers inside me… please." Eagerly willing to learn new tricks Emma soon obeyed and slid two fingers inside the warm velvet, as it enclosed her digits she could feel every curve and detail of the brunette's passage. She let her fingers slide around, discovering tender spots and creating new waves of moisture.

Looking up, Emma saw Regina's hand slide down over her taut stomach to join Emma's between her legs. To Emma's surprise the Queen squeezed one of her own fingers in with Emma's and pushed Emma's up towards the front, there the blonde could feel an area which was smoother than the rest of the passage and in a low and husky voice the Queen whispered "right there".

Emma shivered with the pleasure of the Queen's voice and took the hint and began to rub her fingers there. The Queen kept her finger inside herself, just behind Emma's, and used it to roughly push the blonde's digits onto the smooth spot. Taking the hint, Emma began to rub harder on the area and was soon rewarded by intense moaning from her Queen.

Regina felt the world around them disappearing again and all her senses focusing on what was happening inside her, the tight pull in her abdomen and the fireworks of pleasure beginning to build at her core told her that she was going to come again and so she tensed her entire body and allowed the feeling to overtake her. As the climax came she squeezed Emma's fingers, and her own one, so tight that it stunned them both.

When the orgasm had finished with her, the Queen slid her own finger out and Emma marvelled at how the tight passage closed around her own two digits again. She smiled up at Regina and whispered "you are amazing, how did you do that?"

Regina laughed tiredly and panted "do what?"

Emma stared at the beautiful pink rose as she slid her fingers out of it to find them dripping with hot liquid. Reverently she replied "reach the climax without touching… you know… the little nub".

Regina laughed again at the sweet innocence of her fierce, and very new, young Queen. "Truthfully, my love, I do not know how the mechanics of it works, only physicians could tell us that and to be honest I don't think they care about a woman's pleasure. I know that not all women can achieve it though. Would you like to see if you can?"

Emma looked thrilled and frightened all at once, but then her love of a challenge took over and she grinned and said "yes, let us try it!"

She quickly jumped up and laid down next to Regina. The Queen smiled at her enthusiasm and had to admit that despite her own fatigue, she was really looking forward to entering the gorgeous blonde.

Regina ran her hands over Emma's body, paying particular homage to the firm, petite breasts with their erect, rosey nipples and then caressed her former maid's thighs. She looked up at Emma and reassured "I can see that you are very wet indeed so this shouldn't hurt much even if it is your first time being entered. I will only use one finger and you will have to let me know if you feel too uncomfortable."

Emma nodded and gave a nervous smile. Regina laid down on top of her, kissed her tenderly and whispered "don't be afraid, if you don't like it I'll go back to your little pearl, there are so many other ways to make love and we will find the ones you like and ignore the ones you don't. I will never hurt you again, not in any way."

Emma knew what the Queen meant and marvelled how making love had somehow become more than just about bodies and climaxes. These actions all meant something, this cemented the two lovers together and maybe it could even heal some of their wounds.

They kissed for a while and Regina snaked her hand down between Emma's legs, when it was in place at the apex of the blonde's thighs, Emma stopped the kissing to whisper "use the finger that was inside you, I want you to enter me with the finger that you entered yourself with."

Regina nodded and returned to kissing her as she placed the finger that was still wet from her own juices by Emma's opening. Just as Emma opened her mouth to allow Regina's tongue access, the Queen let her slender finger slide inside the hot and soaked pussy. It was tight but relaxed enough for the finger to slide in unencumbered.

As Emma felt her first love enter her mouth and her sex simultaneously she felt something strange, something that wasn't just the physical effects of being entered. There was a tingling going through her body, like tiny magnets were drawing the sensations in her sex and mouth through her body and out through the fingertips. She lifted her hands and gasped as she saw white light emanating from them.

Regina followed her gaze to the fingertips and looked perplexed as she mumbled "magic?" in a questioning tone.

Regina locked eyes with a frightened Emma and pointed out "you have magic" in a stunned but impressed voice.

"I… I... do?" Emma asked while trembling slightly.

Regina smiled at her, as ecstatic as if it was her nameday. "Yes, you do! Making love must have set it off, possibly with the aid of the shocking experiences of the day. Emma, tell me if it feels like this."

The Queen closed her eyes and directed her own magic through her fingertip and into Emma. Feeling double the tingling that she had experienced in herself moving from her sex and out into her body, Emma gasped loudly and panted "yes, yes it feels like that but mine felt more… subtle. What's happening?"

Regina once again sought Emma's gaze and when she knew she had it she reverently said "that is your magic mixing with mine. I had no inkling you had magic powers. We have to find out what this all means, but for now I just want to make you climax so you can feel the physical effects of how much I love you. Is that alright?"

Emma nodded and licked her lips. These strange new sensations were overwhelming her and she was so grateful that the Queen was on top of her so she could cling on to the older woman for safety and reassurance.

Regina brought her other hand down between Emma's legs and began to circle Emma's clit tenderly as she slowly moved her finger in and out of the tight passage. Soon Emma's breath became laboured and the white light flickered at her fingertips, when she looked down at it she saw that the white was mixed with the Queen's shade of purple, the two colours mingling and seeping into each other to create a pale lavender light in some places.

Emma felt the pressure of orgasm build and was happy that she was going to experience that feeling with the Queen inside her. But she felt that something wasn't right, there was one thing missing.

"I… I refuse to come until I know your name", Emma panted in between desperate moans.

"Alright, what if you promise to let go and allow yourself to climax just as I tell you my name? Then we both get what we want", Regina panted back with eyes that glowed purple with magic.

The air in the room seemed to hum with magic and arousal and everything felt strangely…  _significant_. It felt to Emma as if she had been waiting for this moment for a long time, but that couldn't be because she could never have imagined something as strange and wondrous as this.

"Fine, tell me what your name is and I promise to allow my climax to begin", Emma whimpered while her sea-green eyes fixed on the Queen's deep brown ones with burning intensity.

The Queen increased the speed of her circling of Emma's clit and angled her finger up to rub at the wall separating her hole from her clit as she lovingly said "my name is  _Regina_ ".

At the R of Regina, Emma's orgasm took hold and made all the magic flowing through her push through her system in large and powerful waves. Emma closed her eyes and saw nothing but white dazzling light, her ears thrummed with the thumping of her own pulse and the strange soft swishing sound of magic smoke filling the room with purple and white.

Regina smiled happily and looked around her like an excited child as the magic formed shapes and figures in the air around them. She felt Emma's sex clenching around her finger and she heard her one true love scream "REGINA" as the last of the mighty orgasm drained her last energy.

Emma's body relaxed, the white magic flickered strongly and then died and the room became filled with wisps of purple smoke, the scent of female sex and the rich, almost softly singing sounds of Regina's amazed and happy laughter ringing out.

As soon as Emma regained her powers of speech she softly croaked "hello Regina, it's nice to meet you."

Regina laughed again and her eyes filled with happy tears as she adoringly replied "hello Queen Emma, it's  _better than I ever could have thought_  to finally meet you, to have finally found you."


	49. Chapter 49

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Here is another chapter for today. I would like to take this chance to point out that some days (like today) I might publish more than one chapter but then some days I might not post one at all. That hasn't happened so far, but I want to have the possibility to skip a day if my life or lack of creativity requires me to so without getting reviews asking me where the chapter is or if I've died. :) I hope you can all respect that, a writer that doesn't feel forced to write will write better. Thank you!

Evening had come and found Regina and Emma half asleep in bed. Regina was laying on her back and Emma was flopped on her side next to her, with an arm and a leg draped over the brunette's body and her head resting comfortably on Regina's soft chest.

Regina began lazily drawing little patterns on Emma's shoulders and back with her fingertips and gathered the courage to ask "how are you coping with everything, my love?"

"You mean that strange magic… thing that happened?" Emma queried in a drowsy voice.

"Well yes, that too I suppose. But I was referring to the revelations of this very long and eventful day", Regina replied with a voice that hid her fear at the answer.

"I… I suppose I have been thinking about my parents a bit. I have always wondered what they were like, the fairies would only tell me stories of their bravery and their good hearts but there must have been more to them than that. They must have had… problems and, you know, bad habits… like all humans", Emma replied and felt suddenly embarrassed.

Regina chuckled drily. "Well in your mother's case I can say that she had surprisingly few faults, she was always little miss perfect. But the few flaws she did have were large enough to make up for their small number."

Emma lifted her head to look at Regina, examining the features of the one person who would tell her the uncovered truth about her parents. "You mean the fact that she didn't keep your secret?"

"Well yes, there was that. But that act stemmed from something bigger, remember that she was only a child when she catastrophically told my mother about Daniel and my mother could be  _extremely persuasive_. No, it was the fact that your mother had a tendency to always think that she knew what was best and to always interfere in others business to try and  _help them_. Whether or not they wanted to be helped. It was her greatest flaw and in some ways… her greatest asset. She did help a lot of people", Regina finished in a slightly tremulous voice.

Emma realised that there was a lot of raw emotion there and that the day had probably stirred a lot of it up. She decided to take the conversation on a detour and return to the topic of her mother in a while. "Do you miss Daniel very much?" Emma asked in a tentative voice instead.

Regina was quiet for a while before simply saying "yes." Emma felt her heart sink as she wondered how she could ever live up to this fabled first love.

However, Regina continued "he was my first love and I thought he would be my last. Now I know that we were very young and didn't know each other that well, we never had that much time to talk as my parents were often with me. I loved him with all my heart but now I wonder if he and I would still love each other as much today. I doubt that I could feel about him the way I feel about you right now."

Emma smiled a huge puppy smile and was unable to stop herself from asking "and how do you feel about me?"

Regina laughed. "Like you are the only one I can be truly vulnerable with, like you are the only one who will never be afraid of me or misunderstand me. The connection I have with you goes so much deeper than just attraction and romance. I know that if I did not desire you I would still want you by my side, as an advisor and as a friend, for the rest of my life. I have never felt that way before."

Emma beamed with pride and nuzzled into the soft skin above Regina's breast before asking "you told me about my mother. What about my father, did you know him too?"

Regina knitted her brows slightly and replied "not as well as your mother, naturally. My run-ins with your father were usually at sword's point. He was very valiant and loyal though."

"I know, I know.  _Handsome, true and brave… always a perfect and charming prince_ ", Emma intoned as if she had heard the words a hundred times.

"Did the fairies tell you about his quarrels with the dwarfs, his inability to draw even the most obvious conclusions and his tendency to talk in length about the days when he had long, flowy hair?" Regina asked with a cheeky smile.

Emma raised her head swiftly to look at Regina with big eyes. "No! Wait, my father had long, flowy hair?"

"Oh yes, dear! Not when you were born of course, no he had cut it before your mother met him. But everyone around him knew that he had been quite proud of his mane of hair that he sported when he was a shepherd. Even his closest allies would giggle about it in the taverns", Regina assured her and kissed her on the nose.

Emma laughed and looked astonished at Regina. "I never knew that. They seem… so much more real when you tell me about these things. Tell me something else, please", Emma pleaded.

Regina sighed as she met the gaze of the tenacious green eyes _. I could never deny this woman anything_ , she thought to herself before speaking again.

"Your mother had an absurd hate for leeks. If her father or I ever desired a dish with it in and asked the cook to make it she would scream and theatrically beg for anything but things containing leeks. Although, since Snow and her father preferred to take their meals while out on picnics or visits to other royal families, always without me of course, I was free to fill the castle with leek soups and leek-and-potato-mash. I would often do just that and ensure the castle stank of it when they returned from their excursions without me", Regina finished with a sad smile and her eyes looking at anything but Emma.

"I'm so sorry they left you out like that", Emma said kindly.

"So am I, dear. I often wondered if I would have become less bitter if I had felt a part of their family. I ended up being a trophy wife for the king to show off to his friends and use as a possible broodmare and an unpaid nanny to your mother. Of course, none of that was your mother's fault. She did however not help the situation by being… very spoiled and entitled", Regina finished in a terse voice.

For a moment Emma's anger flared as she thought about Regina's words and especially that word  _broodmare_  and all that it would have meant for the young girl that Regina had been. "I wish I could apologize for my grandfather but I don't know quite what to say", Emma whispered as she raised her hand to smooth a long strand of dark hair behind Regina's ear.

"Don't fret, sweetling. It's all in the past. Now I will gladly attempt to answer any other questions you have about your parents at a later date but right now we need to talk about the fairies."

Emma growled unhappily and put her head back down on Regina's chest.

"I know, I feel like pulling off their brightly coloured little wings every time I have the misfortune to encounter them", Regina observed in a low voice and made Emma giggle before slapping her stomach and mumbling "that's too cruel. Just put them under a sleeping curse so they won't bother us."

"I wish I could, my darling. But I'm afraid you will have to meet with them and convince them that you wish to stay with me and that I have not put you under any spell. Telling them that we will rule the kingdom together might help but they will still argue until their dust blows off", Regina replied in a tired way as she returned to tracing patterns on Emma, this time on her sculpted upper arm.

Emma closed her eyes at the soft touch and hummed happily before asking "fine, I'll try to convince the fairies and then get rid of them. But Regina, what do we do if the people do not wish for me to rule them?"

"What I did when they did not believe that I was a fit to be their monarch,  _convince them._  But in your case, all  _you_  will have to do is show yourself as the golden haired child of the beloved Snow White and the admired Prince Charming and they will hand you the kingdom on a platter", Regina replied with disdain dripping from her every syllable.

Emma laughed at the tone and bit the top of Regina's breast before mumbling "don't act so put out, as soon as they do I will hand the platter over to you and offer myself as dessert."

Regina gave an evil smirk and made a low purring sound before drawling "oh, and how do you expect me to handle so much sumptuous sweetness?"

"You seem to  _handle me_  perfectly, my darling Queen", Emma replied in a mimic of Regina's flirty tone.

Regina pushed Emma onto her back and quickly placed herself on top of the slightly taller woman. She kissed Emma hard and finished by biting the blonde's lower lip and purring "I'm going to  _handle you_  right now and we'll see if we can coax some more of that magic out of you."


	50. Chapter 50

It was about a quarter of an hour later when Regina grabbed a handful of blonde locks from the head that was between her thighs and growled "Ogre's balls! The fairies!"

Emma stared up at the brunette while licking wetness off her lips and chin before muttering "would you mind not talking about the fairies or ogre's sexual parts while I am pleasuring you? It really puts me off!"

Regina sat up and pushed Emma off her with a gentle shove while replying "no, can't you feel it? The fairies are almost upon us and I don't think they are alone. I forgot that they were threatening war if I didn't hand you over tonight. It would seem that you have to give your  _I'm-happy-here-thank-you_  speech sooner than we expected, dear. "

Emma grimaced but sat up in the bed while looking around for their discarded clothes. However, she didn't have to worry about that as a wave from Regina's hand made them both fully dressed and coiffured in a matter of seconds.

Regina gave herself her usual makeup and took a look in the mirror to ensure that her spell granting her youthful appearance was still in working order. She saw that it was and was just about to leave the mirror when she spotted a lovers bite on her neck. She grinned at Emma and pointed to it while purring "oh I'm keeping  _that_  for everyone to see".

Emma just pursed her lips at her in an admonishing way and then looked down at her new dress. It most certainly wasn't a servant's dress but it wasn't as elaborate as Regina's black and silver gown either. It was a perfectly fitted two-piece gown in champagne and the same laurel-green as her riding coat with pewter buttons and details, the corseted bodice gave Emma quite the cleavage while the length of the dress and the slightly bell shaped lower part of it were more modest.

Emma caressed the dress reverently and looked at Regina who was pretending not to be pleased with her handiwork and how it had made Emma smile. "I considered providing you with make up as well but we don't want the fairies to think I have completely corrupted you. Now, let's get downstairs before some idiot of a farmer sticks a pitchfork through one of my footmen", Regina said in a bored tone.

Emma grinned at her and suggestively said "then can we come back here so you can corrupt me some more? You promised to show me some spells to be used in bed, remember?"

Regina gave her an evil smirk and purred "oh I will corrupt you so much you'll feel it for a week. Now I will transport us down to the gates so we can meet the rainbow wasps before their so called attack."

As the purple smoke cleared Emma noticed that they stood outside the ornate gates to the castle. On either side of them was the lion share of the royal guards standing at the ready if an attack was coming.

Moving towards them were a flurry of coloured fairies flying above a large amount of humans carrying worn swords, torches and yes, even a few pitchforks. Emma mused on how absurd this was but also felt a bit flattered that this many people would come to protect her and save her. Then her heart hardened as she wondered why those same people didn't protect her from being raised by the fairies, but then the fates had decided that the insensitive fairies were the good ones and the passionate woman next to her was the evil one.

Emma took a deep breath and swallowed her anger at the injustice of the world before taking two steps forwards and to the side, basically shielding Regina from the coming crowd and ensuring that they would see herself, safe and whole, before they saw their chosen villain and attacked.

She felt the strangest sensation then, it felt like Regina's lips on the bared nape of her neck, but she knew that the other woman was standing too far behind her to reach to kiss her. And still, that feeling of a lingering and tender kiss from the warm, soft lips with their beautiful little scar was so very realistic that it made her smile and even relax a bit.

Approaching quickly, the murmurs and ranting from the crowd subsided as they saw Emma standing there, straight backed, beautifully turned out and with a faint smile on her lips. For the first time in her life, Emma felt like the princess she had always been told she was.

The Blue Fairy advanced first and just stared at Emma while getting over the shock of seeing her looking so adult and altered, she wondered if this was the sullen and odd woman-child that had run away no more than a fortnight ago.

Emma stared back with defiance and something that looked like mirth twinkling in her green eyes. She felt like she had been waiting for this her entire life.

In a clear and authoritative voice Emma spoke. "Hello Blue. I would kiss you hello but then you always told me that my kisses were wet and disgusting when I was a child so I suppose you do not want one now?"

Blue pursed her lips and glanced back at the suddenly deathly quiet crowd behind her, she decided to ignore the question and asked one of her own instead. "Are you alright, little one? Has she hurt you or hexed you in any way?"

Regina scoffed behind them and Emma knew that the brunette would soon lose patience with Blue and do something rash, if Emma didn't keep control.

"As you can see, I am perfectly well. Luckily for me, I ran away from you and met Regina and well… fell in love", Emma said simply and with a challenging look in her eyes.

The crowd gasped and a few of them muttered about being under spells and the Evil Queen perverting their princess.

Emma ignored the muttering and continued, this time looking out at the crowd and not at Blue, "I know that you all came here to save me tonight and I can't thank you enough for that. Many of you knew and loved my parents and this is your way of paying homage to their memory and to return the throne to their offspring. Well, you don't have to worry about the last part. I and Regina will be ruling this kingdom together and so I don't need saving or for you to help me retake my throne."

The murmuring from the crowd grew but now it sounded more confused than angry. A large, dark wolf padded forwards and as an old woman threw a red cloak on it, it changed to a tall, beautiful brunette about the same age as Emma's parents would have been.

She stepped forward and smiled kindly at Emma, when she took the blonde's hand in her own Emma started and pulled her hand back. The woman spoke softly and kept her smile in place. "I'm Red, I was a friend of your mother's. I'm glad to see you looking so well, we feared for the worst. But my dear girl, surely you must be under some kind of spell or coerced in some other way?"

"No. I've just come to see a person you all have not. There is a very wonderful woman hiding under the Evil Queen, a woman who against all odds cares and who wants to run this kingdom fairly. She might not be fond of admitting it, but she feels responsible for this kingdom and that is why she rules it for the best of all of us now and not just for herself. We haven't had a war with a neighbouring kingdom for years and when we did she dealt with it swiftly. She didn't just do that to keep her throne, she also kept you all safe. She is a better person now and that is who I have fallen in love with", Emma replied passionately.

The woman called Red stared at Emma with searching eyes and quietly said "I don't think she is under a spell, she is giving off all the scents that a human in love usually does" to Blue.

Blue scoffed and spoke in a voice which travelled to the crowd behind them "even if you are not under some sort of spell you are a young, impressionable woman who has been lured in by that… toxic, evil witch!"

"Bold words from a flying jellyfish", Regina huffed and continued looking unfazed.

Emma just sighed tiredly and retorted "can you prove that? No. Can I prove that I am making a clear-headed and wise decision? No. So in the end we are left with two choices, you either leave me here to take my rightful place as a monarch and live my life in happiness and love OR you try to forcibly remove me, in which case you will not just be up against the army of royal guards and one of the most powerful magic-wielders of our time but also me", Emma took a step closer to the Blue Fairy and they locked eyes.

"You remember how stubborn I can be when I have made my mind up, don't you Blue? Remember that time when Yellow was shouting at me because I got mud in my hair and she said that I wouldn't get any food until I had apologized and promised to never do anything that involved getting muddy again, remember how long I went without food? Remember how in the end you had to rescind Yellow's decision and beg me to eat so I would stop fainting? I was twelve then, now I'm 25 and what's more… I have discovered that  _I have magic_. I love her with all my heart and I have found my home. Do you really want to try and remove me against my will, Blue?" Emma's question hung in the air between them and the crowd of fairies and villagers all seemed to have stopped breathing. The seconds ticked away in painful silence.

The woman with the long, straight dark hair and the elegant features was the one to interrupt the standoff and finally break the silence. "Emma. If we leave you here will you promise me something? Promise  _us all_  that you will give an audience for a few of us each month. Just so we can see that you are doing well and that ruling the kingdom with the Evil Qu… Regina… is working out? Please? I have to know that I am trying to keep you safe, Snow would have wanted me to keep an eye on you."

Emma was about to stubbornly say no and that they would just have to trust Regina like she did, but Regina stepped closer and gently put a hand on her shoulder before whispering "it's your choice, but I think that is a good idea, Emma. You can meet with a few of our subjects to show them that you are safe but also to see if there is anything in the kingdom we should be aware of. It can start monthly and then become more infrequent if you prefer?"

Regina removed her hand and stood back in her stately pose of disinterest. Emma clenched her jaw but knew that this was the only possible compromise. "Alright, on one condition. These meetings will not have more than one fairy attending at a time, I want to be in the company of red-blooded humans these days. Oh, and the meetings will take place in this, I mean in OUR, castle. I am not setting foot in the fairies castle ever again."

Blue made an angry, pinched face and was about to retort when Red calmly said "agreed. I will choose about four or five respected people from the villages, people who knew and loved your parents, and we can meet up as we did with your parents when they had their round table councils."

"You can count me in, sister. As long as the Evil Bitch isn't going to be there", a grouchy-looking, bearded dwarf said from the front of the crowd.

Regina scoffed again and drawled "I very much hope you are referring to the blue moth and not me with that moniker, but no, I shall certainly  _not_  be attending. The idea of meeting up with you louse-infected peasants makes me itch."

Red ignored the commentary and kept her eyes fixed on Emma as she smiled and announced "it is decided, then. In exactly a month I, the Blue Fairy and a few chosen villagers will knock on this gate and if you do not meet us in perfect health to attend a meeting we will all come back, break the gate down and rescue you."

Then the taller woman did something Emma never would have expected, she walked up to Emma and embraced her. It was a brief hug but while it lasted the middle-aged werewolf whispered "I'm sorry that I did not fight the fairies and raise you myself, I was young and foolishly trusted that the fairies would know better than I. I've come to see that I was wrong and you certainly deserved to grow up with people who loved you. I'm so sorry."

Emma looked puzzled at the unexpected affection and wondered if it wouldn't actually be a good thing to meet this old friend of her mother's once a month. She made herself smile and thanked the woman for her help and her good suggestion.

"Don't mention it. You clearly have your father's loyalty and your mother's bravery, you will serve us well as Queen. Just don't let _her_  make any decisions without you, if you can harness her temper we will all be better off", the werewolf said without having to name who this  _her_  was.

Regina gave another scoff, but this one sounded less convincing. Emma just smiled and nodded. Red walked back down to the crowd of villagers while shouting "well done everyone. The princess is safe and on the throne where she belongs, we can all go home and prepare for a good night's sleep. Thank you for your bravery tonight!"

Emma felt like she should probably have been the one to say all that and realised that she had so much to learn about leading people. But learn she would and the people of this kingdom would not regret leaving her here with Regina.

People began to slowly mill out and the fairies flew with them after Blue had asked them to leave as well. When everyone was out of earshot the Blue Fairy fixed her eyes on Emma and took a deep breath before speaking.

"So,  _this_  is how you are going to repay us for trying to raise you to be a true princess, a princess properly prepared for having a husband and a child to tend for? By running away and making everyone blame us for raising you to be some wildchild that then becomes seduced by a  _perverted, black-hearted_   _vixen_?" Blue surmised icily.

Emma stared at the little fairy whom flitted her wings, in what looked to Emma as a disapproving manner, right in front of her face. Then the blonde reached her arm back as far as the seams of her dress would allow and punched the fairy with as much power as she could muster.

Blue went flying and landed on the ground a few paces away, the little creature soon sat up and brushed her dress off while cursing like a sailor, her ladylike facade all forgotten.

Regina sauntered over while giving an evil laugh before bending over where Blue sat, pursing her lips and sarcastically cooing down at the floored creature "do you really think I'm a  _vixen_ , Blue? I never knew I was your type? I'm flattered, but I'm not into mating with insects. Come, Emma. We have more important things to deal with."

As Regina walked back towards the gates she stopped next to Emma, offered the blonde her arm and only when Emma gently placed her hand on the slender arm and nodded her agreement did Regina wave her hand and transport them back into their bedchambers.


	51. Chapter 51

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors note: Thank you to all my lovely readers for your support and kind comments and a particular thanks to Carnimiril for the amazing fan art (go check it out on Tumblr!)   
> Important question - I am receiving feedback that some of you want more sex in this story and that others want less sex. Do please let me know where you stand on the matter as I want to please as many readers as I can. Thank you!

As they arrived back in the room Emma threw herself at Regina and kissed her clumsily, high on adrenaline and joy. Regina laughed into the kiss before returning it with passion.

When they finally broke apart Emma whispered "we did it. I'm free!"

Regina caressed her hair and looked at her with eyes wet with emotion and replied "you. You did it, my love."

There was a barely audible scuff of feet outside the large doors. Regina's head turned towards the sound with such speed that it made Emma start, she could never get used to how heightened Regina's senses always were and if she was honest, it made her sad that her lover never felt like she could relax and ignore her surroundings, but then that was what a life like Regina's would do to a person, she realised.

"I'll go see who it is. Just calm down and enjoy our victory, Regina", Emma said and relished in saying the other woman's name.

Regina scoffed and looked just as on guard, Emma could almost feel a fireball forming in the brunette's elegant hand.

When Emma reached the doors she could hear whispering and someone saying "shhh, is that someone by the door?" Emma knew that voice and so she opened one of the large oak doors and said "hello Agnes".

Billy and Agnes both jumped when they were discovered and looked as if they had been caught stealing the castle's silverware. Behind them Regina sighed and mumbled "oh good, it's Tweedle dumb and Tweedle scared."

" _Regina_!" Emma berated her and was met with an indifferent shrug as Regina walked over to the mirror and inspected her lipstick.

"You speak to the Queen like that?" Agnes whispered with her big eyes flitting between Emma and the brunette by the mirror.

Emma grinned hugely before starting to speak excitedly. "I do now! I… suppose you haven't heard about all the developments. We have sort of been locked up in this bedchamber when everything was settled. I shall give you the short version of the tale, I am your second Queen now because I was born a princess and now I am the lover of the Queen. Well,  _that Queen_  because I'm another Queen. Well, sort of as I am not coroneted yet but…"

Regina interrupted in a tired voice. "Dearest, you aren't making even a drop of sense. I suggest you tell the two squirrels to scuttle off and we will make an official announcement to all the servants tomorrow".

"Ah yes. I suppose that would be best. I'm sorry, my little treacle tarts… it would seem that you have to wait to hear the whole story", Emma beamed at them.

Agnes and Billy stared at each other, shocked not only by the news and how the two women spoke to each other but also at Emma's almost frighteningly good mood. They had never seen the secretive and serious young woman this excited and… unperturbed.

In the end it was Billy who spoke. "Alright, well thank you for _almost_  telling us, Emm... I mean, your Majesty! Just one question before we go."

Emma nodded happily at him and resisted the strange impulse of reaching out and pinching his cheek.

"The royal guards all assembled outside and we could see that there was some sort of kerfuffle involving people with torches and lots of the colourful fairies flying everywhere. We couldn't see what happened though, all the higher staff members made us leave the windows", Billy spluttered excitedly.

As there was no question in the tirade Billy just gave, the women around him waited and listened. Emma with a patient smile and hands which kept excitedly clenching into fists, one of them with contusions on the knuckles. Agnes with a confused and worried face and finally Regina with a look that would be deathly menacing if it wasn't for the ghost of a smile playing at the sides of her painted lips.

"So… what happened? Did something  _magical_ happen?" Billy finally managed with a quick hero-worshipping glance at Regina.

Emma nodded solemnly before saying "most of them got away but there were a few magical casualties, yes."

Agnes gasped and tugged on Billy's sleeve to make him leave before they were told the grizzly details but Billy tugged back and inched close to Emma with his eyes the size of saucers while whispering "what did she do?"

"Oh, Regina didn't do anything", Emma replied seriously and added in a whispering tone "you see, I've got magic too and as the fairies made me angry I accidentally released my powers and I TURNED THEM ALL INTO CRABS!"

Agnes broke out in a proper belly laugh and behind her Emma could hear Regina snorting under her breath. Billy just stared at her with pursed lips and dashed hopes. Emma winked at him and then pushed his face out of the way of the door as she closed it. Soon the steps of the two young people could be heard echoing down the stone stairs.

"One day you'll have to tell me what this fascination with crabs is pertaining to", Regina said to Emma in a much warmer tone than she had used when they had company. Knowing that there was a particular loving tone that the older woman kept just for her and her own father made Emma feel a warmth at the pit of her stomach.

"Honestly, it's not that funny. It's just become something to prick Billy with", Emma shrugged as she sauntered up to the brunette who, thanks to her heels, was now Emma's height.

Emma nuzzled her face into Regina's neck and enjoyed the soft skin and the feeling of the older woman's pulse point increasing its beating at her touch. Regina embraced her and mumbled "we have some things to discuss, sweetest" into the blonde tresses.

Emma hummed her agreement but kept her face where it was, now kissing the soft skin and giving Regina goose bumps.

"Are you listening to me, Emma?" Regina tried to say in an annoyed voice, but it just came out slightly breathy and pinched.

"Yes, we need to talk", Emma confirmed between kisses.

"Exactly, we need to talk about your magic and how we are going to handle your new position in this castle", Regina replied, this time with her voice more controlled.

"If you want me to stop what I'm doing and listen to you, you're going to have to stop using words like  _handle_  and  _new position_ ", Emma breathed in Regina's ear.

Regina rolled her eyes and coolly groaned "Emma, you're _25_  not  _15_. Control yourself for a few minutes."

"Do I have to? I was a virgin for 25 years! Untouched and unwanted I waited for someone and then I found _you_ of all people! You're practically sex on legs and you are so experienced and so soft and I love you so much. I want to celebrate our victory and that we overcame the unveiling of our secrets", Emma whined before stopping to place another tender kiss on Regina's neck.

When she continued her voice was more subdued but still beckoning. "I just want to continue where we were before the fairies marched in, touching and talking in our bed. We can deal with my magic, coronation and details of our new situation tomorrow. Just please… let us go to bed and forget about the world. Tomorrow will be serious enough without us sacrificing tonight as well", Emma pleaded.

Regina sighed. "Alright, dear one. On one condition."

"Name it", Emma ordered with a huge smile.

"That we do some  _talking_  in between the sessions of lovemaking", Regina said with smirk as her hand slipped down to cup one of Emma's ass cheeks.

Emma audibly drew in breath at the welcome touch and promised that they could do anything Regina wanted as long as the brunette's hands stayed on her body.


	52. Chapter 52

Talking to the servants had gone surprisingly well. This was mainly because most of them went from being deathly frightened of Regina to now being deathly frightened of Regina  _and Emma_.

Emma had tried to put their minds at ease and playing guessing games with herself regarding what they might be thinking. Were they worried she had spied on them as a maid and would tell Regina? Were they worried that their jobs were in danger with the new changes? She tried to answer all the questions that the silent servants didn't ask.

In the end Regina had lead her away while whispering "you won't find out what they are thinking until a few days when they stop being discreet and you can hear them gossip and fret from down the hall. Until then, you have done what you can and we have officially informed them of all the changes. Let's leave them to digest."

When they returned to the bedchambers, where they seemed to spend most of their time lately, Emma went to the mirror to inspect her hair in a gesture so much like Regina's that the older woman had to smile.

"So, what now? You said there was someone we had to talk to about my magic?" Emma asked as she smoothed down an errand strand of blonde hair at the back.

Regina sighed and gave a disgusted frown at the thought. "Yes. We need to talk to the imp."

"Imp, you mean Rumplestiltskin?" Emma asked surprised.

"Ooooooh, you got the name right the first time, dearie! That one over there made a right mess of it when she first tried to summon me." The words came from a suddenly appearing, short man in strange clothes and skin that glittered in a sickly, yellowish green colour.

Regina sighed again and rolled her eyes as she said "I had only seen it written down and to be honest, with a name like yours it's not odd that people get it wrong. Ever considered changing it to, oh I don't know, Ben?"

"Ben? Oh no, you two might be Ben-material but I am most certainly a Rrrrrumplestiltskin", the imp replied while pointing at Emma and Regina.

Rumple took a good look at Emma and the blonde stared back, more with curiosity and a feeling of wariness than fear or disgust. Rumplestiltskin clearly appreciated that as he bowed to her and said "why, your Majesty… not even a flicker of fear in those royal green eyes?"

"Like me, she isn't scared of the likes of you. Now, can we please talk about Emma's magic? You have always said that Snow's child would be special, was it the magic you were talking about?" Regina asked tersely in an attempt to make keep this meeting short.

"Oh my, impatient aren't we!" Rumplestiltskin said with a high-pitched giggle.

Regina rolled her eyes again and walked over to Emma to stand by the blonde's side. "Honestly Rumple, you don't have to show off just because there is someone new in the room", she drawled superiorly.

He gave another high-pitched giggle, this one even more manic than the last. Then he magicked himself into a chair on the other side of the room and said "the fresh new Queen has magic because she is the product of TWUUU WOVE."

Emma lent forward to Regina and whispered "twuuu wove?" Regina shook her head and in a low voice replied " _true love_ , dear."

"Being the product of true love means that she was born with magic. Then there's the fact that she was meant to be the saviour, of course, that was what I meant when I said that the child of Snow White and Prince Charming would be special", Rumple said as he inspected his long nails.

"The  _Saviour_?" Regina asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, you remember that little nifty curse I groomed you to cast? You remember that you refused and I had to use a fish-smelling mermaid to go find my son?" Rumple asked with a voice dripping with bitterness.

"I have a vague memory of that, yes. You mean the curse that was going to make me kill my father and throw away my chances of happiness for your personal gains, are you not?" Regina replied, matching Rumple's bitterness with venom, drop for drop.

Emma felt worried about where this was heading and quickly interrupted. "So what does the curse have to do with me?"

"Well, dearie! I, cleverly, wrote you into it. Ensuring that after 28 years of cursed bliss you would stumble in to town, break the curse and allow me to run along and find my son. It never happened that way of course so I suppose you aren't the Saviour, but you are still  _special_. Your magic is light, isn't it?"

"I… I don't know what it is", Emma started.

"Yes. It's light magic. Which is why I called you here,  _old friend_. We both use dark magic but I know you have more information about light magic than I do. Now we know that Emma has it because she is the product of true love, great. Next question, how does she go about honing her skills?" Regina asked, clearly displeased with having to turn to Rumple for advice as usual.

"Ah. I suppose she does what we do, but in the rrrrreverse! Magic comes from emotion. Ours stem from anger, jealously or hate. Hers stems from the positive emotions. Make her happy and she'll create a shimmering white unicorn with pink bows for you, dearie!"

Regina sighed as he had just verified what she had assumed all along, but then verification  _was_  needed. Light magic was new to her and trying to teach Emma how to use it wouldn't be as easy as if her lover had her own brand of magic. Oh how the fairies would love that Emma had their kind of sweetness-and-love magic and might benefit more from being taught by them than her.  _Well, no need to remind poor Emma of that_ , she thought to herself.

Rumplestiltskin swaggered over to Emma, peered at her and muttered "does it bother you?"

"What, you getting up close and looking at me like that? Yes, a little bit", Emma replied honestly and made Regina chuckle.

"No no no, being in love with a villain. Who killed your parents. And is… what is it now… about 30 years older than you?" Rumple asked with a malicious grin.

 _If this is what Regina calls an old friend, no wonder she felt lonely before I arrived_ , Emma mused.

Regina was about to give a sassy comment to shut Rumple up but Emma beat her to it.

"No, doesn't bother me at all because she's not a villain anymore, she didn't actually  _kill_ my parents and after having had large amounts of vigorous lovemaking with Regina I can certainly say that her age isn't a problem. She didn't even break a hip!"

Regina snickered but shook her head at Emma for the inappropriate joke. It did the trick though as Rumple laughed as well and bowed before saying "well done, young Queen. At your tender age you have learned a lesson that many people live their entire lives without understanding, love comes in many unexpected guises and when you find it you hang on to it and don't let go for any other reason than if it hurts you. By the way, you do realize that to make this Queen thing stick you should probably be wed? Farewell, dearies!"

Just like that he was gone in a puff of red smoke and Regina sardonically muttered "why no, we don't have any further questions. Yes, we'll be just fine. Thank you for stopping by. Next time I insist you stay for dinner."

Emma chewed the inside of her cheek and said "so, what does this mean regarding my magic?"

"It means that you have to learn the same way I did, just with different emotions fuelling your magic. I suggest we go down to the dining hall for breakfast and then go outside to practice some magic right away", Regina added thoughtfully.

"Why outside?" Emma asked.

Regina grinned at her. "Because if we stay here I will drag you back into bed and do unspeakable things to your insatiable body until you cry out my name over and over again."

"So, just like last night then?" Emma asked, with a delighted and quite smug smirk.

Regina just smirked knowingly at her and opened the door to allow them to head downstairs for breakfast.


	53. Chapter 53

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Warning, this chapter has a violent occurrence, make sure you are in the right frame of mind to read it.

"Try harder!" Regina commanded.

"I am trying as hard as I can", Emma winced with impatience.

She was attempting to use her feelings for Regina to make one of Regina's signature fireballs appear in her hand. So far the closest she had gotten was a tiny plume of smoke rising from her palm.

"This is clearly not working. We need to try something else", Regina sighed. She lifted her hand to use her magic hand gesture but Emma stopped her.

"Regina wait, what are you doing?"

"There is a book of light magic spells that Maleficent gave me once as a joke. It's up there gathering dust on my shelves. I was going to magic it down here so we could use it, you need to begin to learn how to read spells anyway", Regina said with an elegant shrug of her slender shoulders.

"Um, can… Can I go fetch it? I want to stretch my legs a little", Emma asked in what she hoped was a believable tone.

"Alright, if you want to walk up all those steps in  _that dress_  for absolutely no reason, be my guest. It's a small white book on the bottom shelf, you can't miss it", Regina replied with a disbelieving glance at her lover.

Emma couldn't very well say that the reason she wanted to go get the book was as much that she needed the exercise, she never was much for standing still, as it was to get a break. She kept feeling like a failure every time she couldn't do what Regina wanted her to do. But she would show her and she would damn well impress her!

As she hurried up the stairs, saying hello to a footman who just nervously bowed back, she did have to concede that Regina had a point about moving around in these elaborate dresses. The dress she wore today was cerulean blue and had the usual amount of extra layers and hidden parts to give it the right shape and outline, it gave her a gorgeous silhouette but it was horrible to move in and she found herself missing her maid's dress or even her gardening garb.

She considered changing and coming down to meet Regina with her gardener's clothes on. The added bonus with that would be watching Regina undo the laces on the front of her trousers tonight and that thought certainly made Emma smile as she hurried up the last few steps.

Emma knew that Regina would soon decide that they needed a maid to dress and undress them, it was the way things were done in court. But for the first day or two of her new role Emma had asked if they could dress and undress each other, both to get some privacy while Emma got used to being a Queen and because they couldn't keep their hands off each other anyway.

So as Emma walked into the bedchambers she imagined Regina's slender fingers undoing the laces over her sex and tugging her trousers down.  _Oh, I really have become obsessed, haven't I_? Emma thought to herself as she shook her head at her insatiable need for Regina's touch.

She soon found the little white book and picked it up gingerly, as if it might explode in her hand. Then she left the room, casting an involuntary glance at their bed which stood empty and waiting for them.

She rushed out, holding her many layered skirt up with one hand and the book in the other. Too late did she see the looming shadow of a man, a large man who approached her just as she was about to take the first step down the stairs and hissed "Mrs Cox asked me to do this as her farewell present to you" as he gave her a powerful shove in the back.

There was nothing she could do to stop herself from falling. Her high heeled shoes lost grip of the ground and she was tumbling down, her vision filling with the blurred images of the walls and the steps beneath her as she fell.

The fall only lasted moments but it felt longer for Emma, she tried to right her falling form, tried to find something to focus on and get a hold of to stop her descent. But her hands only brushed stone steps and stone walls without getting purchase on anything. She could hear the book that she had dropped falling next to her, hitting every step until it finally stopped. Soon after that, her fall stopped as well.

When she opened her eyes her body began to tell her that everything hurt, there didn't seem to be a part of her body that wasn't screaming in agony. She knew that she had heard a few snapping sounds as she landed and assumed that a lot of her bones must be broken. She had landed on her side so her hip and ribs were the things signalling their pain the loudest, luckily her arms and hands had shielded her head from the final impact on the floor beneath the stairs, although it had taken a few hits on the way down.

Still, Emma was so happy that everything was painful. The other options would be that she couldn't feel her body parts at all anymore or that she was dead and therefore not feeling anything whatsoever. Considering the large amount of hard stone steps she had just been pushed down she had to assume that her death had been the expected outcome of the crime.

Suddenly Emma saw something flying in her general direction. But she knew it wouldn't hit her, it was too high in the air. Whatever was hurtling down the stairs hadn't fallen like she had, it was flying by magic and then suddenly it wasn't anymore. Because it had just hit the wall behind her with a loud bang and then slowly sliding down the wall in a bloody mess, was Hollins the head gardener.

Emma felt her consciousness slipping away due to the pain and as Regina magically materialized next to her with the face showing every ounce of worry that it possibly could, Emma only had time to whisper "you shouldn't have killed him, you're not supposed to do evil things anymore" before everything went dark.


	54. Chapter 54

When Emma woke up the pain wasn't as excruciating but it was most certainly not gone either. She lifted her head with difficulty and saw that most of her body was covered in bandages, some fresh and white and some tattered with blood stains. It was one of the bloodstained ones that Agnes was gently unravelling from Emma's arm at the moment.

When she saw that Emma's eyes had opened she smiled so big it seemed to light up the room. "Oh hello there!"

Emma tried to sit up and smile back but it was impossible, as soon as she tried to use even the smallest muscle everything hurt more.

"Shh, lay back down and don't move. The Queen, I mean  _Queen Regina_  healed your worst wounds with magic but because your injuries were so serious you will still need to be still and heal for a week or so. The physician said that if it wasn't for Regina's magic healing you after the fall, oh and also the protection of your own magic keeping you from falling on your head, you'd be a goner! I would have broken like a twig if it were me", Agnes smiled as she put the bandage down and picked up a new linen strip to apply over, what looked to Emma, like a wound caused by the hard edge of one of the steps.

Emma had never before been so happy to hear Agnes blabber on and she laid back down and let the words wash over her. Magic had saved her and magic had immediately avenged her, she realised as the image of Hollins being smashed against the wall came to her.

"Where's Regina? I want to see Regina", Emma croaked with dry lips.

"Oh, she'll be back. She has barely left your side since she magicked you up here. She had a surprise visitor a moment ago and I just managed to convince her that you would be fine if she left for a minute or two. Oh, she'll skin me when she realises that you woke up when she wasn't here!" Agnes bit her lip in worry and her hands froze in the middle of the re-bandaging.

"Don't worry, it's not your fault. How long have I been sleeping?" Emma asked groggily.

"About two days. You passed out and then Queen Regina gave you something magical in a cute little bottle to keep you sleeping while you heal", Agnes said and finished applying the bandage.

"Agnes? Can I have some water?"

Agnes jumped up from her chair. "Oh of course! Are you sure you want water? I can get you some raspberry juice, honeyed milk or maybe some wine to make you feel better?"

"Water will be fine", Emma croaked.

Agnes took glass and a pitcher from the table and poured Emma a small glass of water. She held the glass to Emma's lips and let the blonde take a cautious mouthful. The water felt so cool and soothing in her raw throat that Emma greedily gulped down all the contents of the glass.

"Thank you", she whispered and then added "Agnes, I'm going to try and think of Regina now and alert her to that I'm awake. I'm not sure I can do that with magic but considering she senses things so well I think it will work. I'm just telling you so that you can prepare yourself for her arrival."

Agnes pinched her lips shut, stood up straight and nodded nervously.

Emma closed her eyes and thought  _Regina._ Her mind focused on thick, soft dark hair and beautiful full lips. It focused on mahogany eyes glittering amber in sunlight and a deep voice which made her heart soar. It focused on the only person who made her feel invincible and then… the smoke appeared and cleared and Regina was next to her.

"Oh Emma, you're awake. I'm so sorry! I wanted to make you sleep through the worst of the pain", Regina said softly as she ran a hand reverently over the side of Emma's face.

Emma once again tried a smile but stopped as the pain kicked in, she realised that she must have hit her jaw or the side of her face at some point. "It's ok, I wanted to be awake. I wanted to see you and tell you that everything is going to be ok."

Regina laughed softly. "Shouldn't I be saying that to you, my treasure?"

"Oh,  _I know_  I'm going to be fine. I fully expect you to stop at nothing to keep me alive so you can torture me with more magic lessons", Emma groaned.

Regina just smiled tenderly at her and Emma marvelled at the love in the brunette's eyes.

Emma grew serious and fixed her eyes on Regina's as she said "we will have to talk about Hollins and what happened to him, you know."

Regina's features tensed, she clenched her jaw a couple of times while she looked down at her hands.

"I know. Emma, I… didn't mean to take his life. I just lashed out in anger and shot him away from me, away from us. But I know I shouldn't have. The second I saw him squashed against the wall I knew it was the wrong thing to do, if nothing else than because he should have been judged in public. The people should have seen what he did. Oh Emma, if he had killed you I don't know what I would have done. Probably burned down the entire realm", Regina said with a mirthless chuckle and ran her hand over her face.

She looked so tired and Emma wondered if she had slept at all, she wanted to hold her and to kiss her but she knew she couldn't. "Once again the problem comes down to your first instincts always being  _fight, revenge,_ and _hurt them before they hurt you_. Under the circumstances that is understandable, I might have done the same if someone had pushed you down the stairs… but we have to be careful. You'll scare people again and we are trying to convince people that you have changed and that we will rule this kingdom in peace and safety for all."

"I know!" Regina snapped while standing up. She began to pace back and forth next to the bed as she muttered "I want to be good but it's so hard to unlearn a lifetime of fighting. I promise I'll re-double my efforts, I have scouts out searching for Mrs Cox as she was the one who gave the order to push you and when they find her I will publicly hear her story and then throw her in a dungeon. Instead of just letting ants lay eggs in her skull. "

Emma looked horrified but then stopped as that hurt as much as smiling. "Well… that's a start!"

Regina looked at her seriously but then broke out in a smile. "Oh Emma, you have no idea how worried I have been. To be honest, my father has been almost as bad. He has stumbled over to our room to see you as often as he could. This morning I caught him reading children's fairytales to you", she said with a shake of her head.

Emma smiled at the thought of Henry reading to her. "Good, I was only ever read stories on my birthday as a child, that was when the cook would sneak up to my room and read for me. Other than that the fairies expected me to read my own books, they were always terribly busy with meddling in other people's business, you see, and didn't have time to read to me. I secretly suspected it was because they didn't like to lift the heavy pages with their stupid little hands."

Regina walked over to the head end of the bed and stroked Emma's hair as she softly mumbled "I will read to you every night and every day if you like, but only if you promise to read for me once in a while. It can be quite taxing running a kingdom and I can't think of a better way to relax than lying with my head on your stomach as you read to me."

"I'd like that", Emma said tenderly and then attempted a grin at Agnes who had basically dropped her jaw at seeing the frightening Evil Queen so soft and loving.

Regina turned, noticed the girl and spoke in her usual imperial voice. "Good, you're still here. Where is that pimply boy of yours, the one with the irrational fear of crabs?"

"He went to fetch more linen for bandages, your Majesty!" Agnes squeaked.

"Well, tell him I expect him to keep guard outside the door whenever I am not with Emma. The skinny little rake is likely to be knocked over if an enemy as much as pokes him in the chest but at least he can call for the guards stationed at the bottom of the stairs if someone would manage to sneak up" she commanded as her gaze focused back on Emma.

"Actually he is strong for his size! He's a good man, my Billy. And I don't care what you say about him! No one knows how strong and kind he is and no one knows how lucky I am that he loves me. I'm going to marry him, no matter what the stupid castle rules say!" Agnes almost shouted at the two Queens in front of her.

Emma tried her hardest to not laugh at the surprised look on Regina's face. The older woman looked like a piece of the furniture had just told her off.

Soon Regina gathered her wits and retorted calmly "I see, well first of all I don't doubt that he is a good man, I wouldn't have asked for him to guard Emma if he wasn't. Secondly, I have no idea where that tirade came from but rest assured that if you two wish to marry I will not stand in your way. The rules are against fraternization, which could distract from work tasks and that, in Mrs Cox's opinion, would ruin the moral fibre of the servants. But there has been nothing said against marriage. Anyway, Mrs Cox's rules aren't in play anymore. Do what you wish", Regina finished with a dismissing wave at the now beaming girl.

Any further discussion was disrupted as a newcomer transported themselves into the room, right next to the bed and just in front of where Regina stood.

Regina sighed deeply and said "that's funny, I could have sworn I told you to wait for me downstairs."

The reply was a superior smirk and a drawled "oh, but you don't give me orders, remember?"


	55. Chapter 55

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: If you are enjoying this story, don't forget that you can vote for it in the SwanQueen fan awards for a few more hours before the close of the day 6 poll. It's nominated for best AU but in such brilliant company that I don't expect to win. Still, I appreciate the nomination and what votes I have gotten! Just as I appreciate all your comments and reviews!

"No, of course I do not give you orders but I thought you would be civil and wait downstairs until I came back to talk to you and show you out. I told you that Emma was awake and that I was going to check in on her and then return, I'm not sure which part of that was unclear", Regina said with fury lurking in her tone.

"Oh, but I had to see the new little Queen. Especially as people seem to try to break her into little pieces, I have to see the whole puzzle before someone breaks it again" a tall, woman with black horns and a few strands of ash-blonde hair trickling out in the back said with a wry smile.

"No one is  _breaking her_  ever again", Regina hissed with her dark brown eyes glittering with rage.

Maleficent raked her eyes over Emma and smirked as she said "she's pretty, even when bruised and battered like this. And she has magic of her own, no matter how underdeveloped… I mean after all, you were quite the innocent little beginner when you came to see me that first day too, oh and she's clearly a fighter if she survived that fall. I see the appeal, especially as you always did have a thing for blondes."

Emma frowned at being evaluated like livestock and croaked "um, pardon me but who are you?" and used her barely workable arm to push her blanket further up her body.

Regina didn't look at Emma when she reached a hand out and pulled the blanket higher up for her and then rested her hand on Emma's shoulder. With her jaw tight she said "this is Maleficent, my oldest friend. We have been through a lot together, some good and some very bad. She's lovely, until she's not."

"Regina. Don't be like that, your new little Queen won't like me" Maleficent purred with a smirk.

Regina shook her head at the taller woman opposite her but gave an involuntary smile at her friend. "Just be on your best behaviour, Emma is tired and has been severely injured and I'm sure now is not the time she most wants to meet my friends."

The smile and the statement seemed to make the tall woman's demeanour warmer. "Yes, of course, I never was good with waiting until I was invited to things. I just wanted to catch a peak, sorry to interrupt, dear" Maleficent said with a brief smile to Emma.

The ash-blonde in the black dress looked at Regina and drawled "well, it's a good thing that you and your lady-love made the baby with magic, clearly that was what protected it through all of that." Then she lifted her hand as to disappear with the use of magic but Regina stopped her with a "Mal, wait!"

Maleficent put her hand down by her side and looked curiously at her old friend. "Alright, why?"

"What do you mean  _why_? Explain what you just said about a baby!" Regina snapped back.

Emma just stared from one woman to the other. She thought that she must have hit her head worse than expected in the fall two days ago because for a moment there she could have sworn that the semi-rude woman with a horned hat said she had a baby. That she made with Regina. And magic. Clearly she must have misheard, misunderstood or hallucinated that.

Maleficent gave a huge grin and said in an incredulous tone "you mean you don't know?"

"Know what? What's going on?" Emma interjected, tired and in pain and not in the mood for any games or long-winded conversations.

Maleficent looked right at her and explained "you are pregnant, my dear. Don't feel too bad about not knowing, I was the one to inform your mother that she was pregnant too. Clearly your bloodline have no idea when your eggs have been fertilized."

Then Maleficent turned her gaze to Regina and added "I would have expected  _you_  to know, though. I did think it was unlike you to use such strong magic and not take credit for it. You have become powerful indeed! And soon you'll join me in being a mother, congratulations! Don't expect any playdates with my hatchlings though. My little darlings would singe the blonde locks of your weak little spawn."

Regina's mind was working frantically and soon images of her entering Emma with her own essence on her finger and then the magical reaction as she blended her magic with Emma's.  _Oh_ , she thought to herself and looked at Emma with shock and sudden understanding shining in her eyes. They were going to have a child together.

Maleficent saw the two women staring at each other in deep shock and mumbled "well, this awkward silence is probably my cue to leave. I tend to have this effect on social gatherings. I'll return at a better time."

Then Maleficent transported herself out and silence covered the bedchambers like a thick blanket of snow. Emma and Regina stared at each other. Regina was thinking about her longing for a child all these years and wondered if somehow she had wanted this to happen and subconsciously impregnated her younger and still very much fertile lover. If so, was she being selfish? What if Emma didn't want a child?

Emma on the other hand was panicking. Being locked up in the castle with the fairies meant that she had been innocent for so much longer than other women her age. Most fertile women had at least one child by the age of 25 but Emma… up until her escape Emma had spent her time helping out with the animals, daydreaming while watching the swans and having erotic fantasies of her first time.  _How could a woman like that be ready for a child? I'm almost a child myself_ , she thought to herself and felt her heart race. She placed her hand on her stomach but kept her eyes staring straight into Regina's, as to will the other woman to explain this all to her.

The silence kept its grip on them and they still just watched each other, lost in their thoughts and shocked at what their love had done. After a while they heard Agnes squeak "um, congratulations?"


	56. Chapter 56

Agnes' comment broke the tension and despite her panic Emma laughed. Or maybe it was another sign of her panic, but she laughed all the same. Regina still had her hand on Emma's shoulder and she squeezed it as she gave a little laugh herself.

The she turned to the young maid and asked "Agnes, would you leave us for a moment?"

"Yes of course, your Majesty. And I… I won't tell no one. Honest! Well maybe Billy but no one else!" Agnes swore solemnly and scurried out.

Regina pulled up a chair next to Emma and softly said "I'm sorry."

Emma grimaced at the pain as she tried to sit up and Regina responded to the gesture by saying "I would try to remove the pain with magic but I have already used so much magic on you to heal your crushed bones and inner bleeding that I doubt it would have much effect. I promise I will do it tomorrow instead."

With a wince Emma replied "it's alright. I just want to know what you are sorry about?"

"I'm sorry that I… made you pregnant. I'm sorry that I hired homicidal servants…. but then who else would work for the Evil Queen, I'm sorry that I ruined your childhood and I am sorry that I was responsible for the death of your parents", Regina said in a flow of words where every syllable leaving her lips seemed to hurt her.

"That's too much to apologize for, my sweet. You can't keep apologizing for everything you have done every time something happens. Stop saying sorry and just show me with actions that you will make it all up to me. I've forgiven you anyway, how could I not? I love you with all of my heart", Emma stated simply.

Regina couldn't stop herself from kissing Emma then, she kissed her with all the passion of someone who was drowning and finally found steady ground to stand on. Emma's face stung painfully during the kiss but it was certainly worth the pain, Regina's lips were her  _home_  more than any castle could ever be.

Emma's heart was still racing and the panic that her body was still showing reminded her of what they were meant to be talking about. She broke off the kiss and mumbled "what did you mean when you said you were sorry about making me pregnant? Did you do it on purpose?"

"No, no my love. I would never do anything like that intentionally without asking you, you must know that! However I… have wanted children for a long time and I'm afraid that some part of me… wanted you to carry my child."

Emma beamed suddenly and whispered "your child". For the first time it occurred to her that if a life was, against all odds, living inside her… it would be a mix of her and of Regina. She was carrying some of the magnificent creature in front of her inside herself, helping it grow. Somehow, that made it less scary. But then, the child had to come out at some point and what then?

"Regina, I'm not sure I am ready to have a child. I don't know anything about the world or about other people or even about myself! How can I look after another person?!"

Regina parted her lips to speak and then closed them again. She pondered Emma's words and then quietly said "If you really don't feel ready, I can… remove the pregnancy and we can try again later. However, if you want to have the child I promise you that you are very good at looking after people and putting their needs before your own. May I remind you that you spent 25 years with the fairies without swatting them with a dinner plate, that in itself shows the necessary patience to raise a child." Regina paused to allow Emma to snigger quietly.

"But more than that, my love, you would raise the child with me and I have felt ready to be a parent for many years. If you ever falter or feel unsure, I will take over. If you carry the child I promise I will take the largest responsibility for raising it. We will discuss every decision together and I will support you in any way, even give you your freedom if you want to take a while to yourself. Me and the baby will go off and hide Rumplestiltskin's trinkets in his ridiculous castle or go show Maleficent's hatchlings who is the real magic baby royal. But if you do not feel ready I won't blame you for wanting to end this pregnancy and try again when it is planned. Take some time to think about it" Regina finished and gave a faint smile.

Emma nodded and smiled back. Regina took her hand and brought it to her lips and kissed the bruised knuckles softly.

"Kiss me", Emma whispered.

"I am kissing you", Regina replied with a smirk and gently kissed the knuckles again.

"Not there", Emma whispered with the ghost of a smile.

Regina gave a suggestive smile and Emma laughed despite the hurt it caused her and replied "no, I didn't mean  _there_ … I meant on my mouth as you very well know."

Regina leant in and tenderly kissed Emma's lips. Then she quietly said "now get some rest, my love."

Emma nodded as she suddenly felt just how tired she was. She got comfortable on her pillow and Regina adjusted her covers. "If you need anything, water, food, a bandage to be redressed or just another kiss… just think of me as you did before and I will be back. I'm just going to see how my father is doing."

"…and tell him about the baby?" Emma asked with a tired smile.

"No, actually. I didn't want to tell anyone until we had decided what to do", Regina replied honestly.

Emma shook her head slowly. "Not when it comes to Henry, tell him. He'll be a good person to talk to about it."

Regina smiled and leant in to kiss Emma on the forehead. "Alright, I'll inform him of our situation. Then you can watch him give up all pretences of being a frail old man and just come running down here to pat your stomach and ask if you are alright", she added with a grin.

Emma smiled but it was a brief smile as she was fading into sleep fast. Regina gave her one last kiss on the forehead and whispered "I love you Emma Swan" before quietly leaving the room.


	57. Chapter 57

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Thank you for all the support on this story and thank you Beautifulincentive/Nyway for your amazing fan art (it can be found on Tumblr)! I would also like to give a special thanks to those loyal readers who are reading my other current fic, Culltown. I really appreciate the encouragement!

Four days passed. Emma mostly slept but she did have hazy, waking moments when she was fed soup and broth by Agnes and when Regina would give her a cursory clean with a wash cloth and examine her wounds which were healing quickly with the help of magic.

There was also the strange nightly ritual of Regina offering to sleep somewhere else so that she would not jostle Emma in their bed or accidentally touch her and cause the blonde pain. Every time Regina offered, Emma would scramble over to the brunette and pull her forcibly into the bed and into her arms. Pain or no pain, Emma was determined to not spend another night without her lover.

When Emma finally woke up to full consciousness, it was to a scraggy and wrinkled face with a giant smile plastered on it. Emma started slightly as he was so close and then grinned as she croaked "oh, hello Henry!"

"Oh, sorry! Did I wake you, little one?" Henry exclaimed with a terrified look.

Emma cleared her throat. "Well, yes. But that is a good thing. I feel like I could sleep forever if allowed", Emma admitted with a yawn.

"Don't say that too loudly, people will start gossiping about a sleeping curse", Henry whispered before settling into the chair next to the bed.

Emma smiled and saw that on the table next to him was a few items that weren't there before. Next to the normal fixtures, the pitcher and glass for the water and the neatly folded pile of linen bandages, was a few things that Henry had clearly added. Emma could see a glass of milk, a thick book and a plate of what looked like honey cakes.

Henry caught her looking and asked "would you like one?"

Emma smiled and shook her head, too drowsy to eat.

"Would you like me to read to you? Regina said that you didn't mind that I read to you before", he asked tentatively.

"Of course I didn't mind, I was very honoured. But I think I have too much on my mind to listen right now", Emma replied despondently.

"Ah yes, too much on your mind and too much in your belly perhaps?" Henry grinned, clearly pleased with his little joke.

Emma gave a faint laugh and found that it wasn't as painful as it had been. "How long have I been asleep? Clearly long enough for Regina to tell you about the baby."

"Oh my yes, it's been about four days since she came to see me, so you have had a well-needed rest but not much solid food. I'm surprised you are not hungry!" Henry exclaimed.

Emma gave him a tired smile. "I'm sure I shall be soon."

The doors to the bedchambers opened and Regina walked in. She gave her father a kiss on the cheek and Emma a kiss on the lips and then said "I'm sorry I left you two alone for a while. I had to speak to Mrs Havisham, who is in charge of the kitchens. She knows people all over the realm and will assist me in finding replacements for Mrs Cox and Mr Hollins. Then it will become the task of the new housekeeper to find a replacement for you, Emma. This sudden loss of servants is most inconvenient."

"Are you blaming that on me,  _your Majesty_?" Emma enquired with a pout and a playfully sarcastic tone.

"You are injured and pregnant, my dear. At the moment I am not blaming you for anything, ask me again in nine months. That is… if you wish to remain pregnant", Regina quickly corrected herself and looked uncomfortable.

Emma looked from Henry, who still sat at the edge of his chair looking excited and concerned at the same time, to Regina who worried her lower lip slightly as she tried and failed to look collected and unfazed.

The blonde sighed deeply and then calmly stated "I suppose we might as well talk about it now. I awoke a few times during my long sleep and thought about the baby, the rest of the time I seemed to dream of it. I believe I'm ready to discuss it."

"Oh! Would you like me to leave?" Henry said urgently and began to rise.

"No", Emma said and held out her hand to gesture for him to sit down. "You might as well hear this. You are our prime adviser anyway and I doubt we would have made any of our good decisions so far if it hadn't been for you. Please stay", Emma smiled kindly at Henry, who nodded his response and sat back down.

"Emma, are you sure you wish to have this discussion now? You are tired, weak and must be hungry. Perhaps you wish to take a few more days to ponder your decision?" Regina asked with a furrowed brow.

"I'm sure. I have been weighing my options, I have been dreaming of our possible future and I have been imagining the life inside me and I know what I need to ask you before I make the final decision."

"Alright, ask me anything", Regina replied calmly but she placed her hand on her stomach as she said it, a gesture that Emma knew meant that Regina was nervous or frightened.

"Regina. Did you mean what you said before? About taking over responsibility if I am not ready to be a mother?" Emma asked tentatively.

"Utterly and completely", Regina replied firmly and smiled.

"Then… I want to have the baby. I'm not sure that I am ready to be a perfect mother but I think you are and I… well I can be the mother who is more like a big sister, at least until I learn to be more like you. It just feels like this was meant to happen. I have waited for a family for so long and then suddenly here it is, and it's not just a life partner but also a father in law and a baby. It's frightening, but it feels right. I think I might be ready, but I want the security of knowing that if I am not… you will take the reins", Emma explained seriously.

"I promise that I will, my love. But for what it is worth, I think you will be a fantastic mother even without my aid. If you are sure you are ready to have this baby then we will have it and increase your  _instant family_ ", Regina replied with her voice so full of tenderness that it made Emma's heart beat faster.

"And if neither of you are ready to raise it, I'll take the little cub!" Henry exclaimed with a huge grin.

Regina rolled her eyes at Emma and explained "he loves babies."

Suddenly Henry looked serious and after a while he quietly said "yes, I always have. But there is more to parenting than love. I always thought that would be enough, that it didn't matter what your mother did to you, Regina, as long as I loved you enough to make up for it. But I was wrong, I watched her restrain you, even hurt you and I watched her eat away at your confidence and your joy and all I did was stand in the background and… love you. I know now that it is not enough, but I know that it is a at least a good start for two people who want nothing but the best for their child." He looked down at his hands, weighing his next words before he spoke them.

"I was spoiled as a child, spoiled with love and joy… I never had many mistakes to learn from when I became a parent myself. You two have both had the misfortune of having bad experiences as children, you can learn from that and give your child just the opposite. You can complement each other as parents, youthful optimism and wiser maturity meeting with one common goal, to love your child and to give it a better upbringing than you had. I would like to help you if I may, I would like to be a better grandfather than I was father. I will give the child all my love but more than that, I will help you raise it to be happy and confident and… free", he finished with a croak in his voice.

" _Daddy_ ", Regina whispered before leaning in and kissing him tenderly on the cheek. He pulled her close and she put her head on his shoulder.

Emma smiled at them and said "I think that settles it, we will have the baby. That brings us to the next big decision."

Regina and Henry broke off from their close embrace and Emma saw that they both had tears in their eyes. Shocked at the sudden moving on to something else Regina stammered "w-what?"

"Well, now you'll have to marry me. Can't have a baby of yours growing up as a bastard", Emma calmly stated.

"Pardon?" Regina said stunned as her brain wondered if she had just been proposed to.

"Well, I mean you know better than I do about these things but Rumplestiltskin did say that we would have to wed to make the coronation believable. So, I have sort of been expecting you to propose, considering you are the experienced one. But if even a baby can't make you ask I suppose I have to do it. Your Royal Highness Queen Regina, will you marry me and spend the rest of your life cursing my Charming genes and odd habits under your breathe for the rest of your life?"

As soon as she awoke from her stunned shock, Regina broke out in happy laughter, she laughed until the previously unshed tears fell from her eyes. As she wiped them away she whispered "it would be my honour."

"This is moving very quickly indeed, what is it with this new generation and hurrying along like this? Give an old man a moment to catch up!" Henry beamed.

"No daddy, I don't think it's MY generation. You forget that Emma is technically a generation below me and it is she who stormed into my life, dared to fill the empty space in my chest, then the empty space in my bed and then got herself with child and now decided to propose to  _the Evil Queen_  while on an empty stomach in her sick bed! This is nothing to do with me or my generation… this is all that whirlwind they call  _Emma Swan_. I am starting to worry I might have bitten off more than I can chew", Regina finished with a mock-glare at the blonde.

"Oh I can guarantee that", Emma promised with a grin.

Henry leaned over and gently patted Emma's still quite flat stomach and said "little Henry the Second here will hopefully take after me and not his high-spirited and fast-paced mothers!"

Regina laughed and walked over to rest her hand on Emma's stomach too. "Henry II, is it?" As she closed her eyes and allowed her magic to scour Emma's stomach she felt her grin fade as she whispered "actually, daddy… we are not going to get away with just naming the baby after you."

"Oh, is it a girl? How exciting" Henry beamed even wider.

"No," Regina added as she frowned with concentration before adding "it is a boy… and a girl… and another girl I think. I am not as good at this as Maleficent. But I think we… are having triplets!"

Regina opened her eyes and stared at Emma "three babies! What did you DO!?"

Emma stared back and just made a squeaking noise before angrily replying "ME? I didn't do anything! You are the one who claimed my maidenhood and the next time apparently impregnated me with three babies! Just how broody were you getting, Regina?"

Regina shook her head. "This is all in your bloodline, you either don't do it at all or you overdo it. Your mother was the same and so was your grandfather, all or nothing. You weren't even sure you wanted children and now you are about to birth three of them!" Regina said as she began laughing at the absurdity of it.

Henry just stared from one woman to the other and quietly said "well you could just name them Henry II, Henrietta and Henryella?"

Emma and Regina both stared at him and incredulously said "Henryella, really?!"


	58. Chapter 58

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Thank you for your nice comments about the triplet twist and most of all for your name suggestions! It's lovely to see so many of you get engaged and creative. There is one child that will still need a name so keep suggesting girl's names! For those of you who are disappointed that I went down the baby route, I'm sorry… I can't please you all. Do also keep in mind that this story will be ending soon, time to start preparing for the end I'm afraid.

Emma stood waiting in the castle's library, it was one of her favourite rooms these days and certainly one of the more quiet ones.  _Perfect for the monthly audience with the Queen_ , she thought to herself as she mechanically ran her hand over her stomach. Now that her pregnancy was beginning to show slightly she found herself touching her stomach a lot, it was comforting in that she felt like she was never alone anymore. Wherever she went, she brought three little lodgers with her.

This would be their second audience, the first having taken place two weeks after Hollins had pushed her down the stairs and she had found out that she was pregnant. That meeting had been a strange one as Emma hadn't wanted to tell them about the babies, she knew explaining how two women had created offspring together would sound like very strange magic and the fact that she and Regina weren't married hadn't helped. But now she was beginning to show a little and if these triplets became as big as she worried they might, she wouldn't be able to tell people it was due to too many honey cakes for long.

Emma walked over to a bookshelf and pensively ran her hand over the spines of the books. She saw a small book that reminded her of that little white book on light magic that she had gone up to fetch that fateful day, she had read the book from cover to cover since and not found out much more than that light magic did indeed work by the same parameters but was fuelled by the intention to do good and summoned by positive feelings.

She looked down at her stomach and smiled as she thought that the three little royals in there would most likely have magic too as magical powers ran in Regina's family and she had magic herself. Regina, suddenly Emma missed her future wife.

She knew that Regina wasn't meant to attend these monthly royal audience's and she understood why the other Queen was in her own meetings, regarding the safety of the realm and possible foreign threats, but she still missed the fiery brunette. She closed her eyes and tried to think of Regina without magically summoning her, it was difficult and Emma felt sure that Regina had felt her puppy-love daydreaming wherever she was at the moment.

Emma could hear steps approaching and smoothed down the front of her elaborate, mauve dress and stood up straight.

The doors opened and Billy stood back to announce the arrival of Red, the Blue Fairy and two of the dwarves, Grumpy and Doc. Emma smiled at that these were the people she had meetings with while her future wife met with army commanders, royal advisors and dignitaries from other kingdoms. Emma soon realised that while she would have to learn about those big serious meetings soon, for now she preferred her little Queen's audience councils.

Emma gestured to a round wooden table that she had commissioned for this purpose and had placed by the windows in the vast library. Everyone went to sit down except Red who walked over to kiss Emma on the cheek first. At their first meeting a month ago Red had stayed after the brief meeting and she and Emma had walked in the walled gardens at the side of the castle, speaking of Emma's parents and the nature of Red's lycanthropy. Emma found herself very comfortable with the middle-aged werewolf and enjoyed having a new link to her parents.

"I would like to say that this will be the last meeting of this nature that I attend. I am far too busy for this nonsense. If needed, I will send one of the other fairies next month but I am done with coming to this dank old castle", the Blue Fairy said with a sniff as she floated just above one of the chairs.

"Oh, that's certainly fine by me", Emma laughed as she sat down.

Red shot her a humorous glance but no one else spoke on the subject. Instead it was the angry dwarf that spoke. "Let's get on with this, sister. Are you ok? Haven't been spellbound, hexed or cursed?"

"No, I'm fine. In fact I've recovered completely from my fall now and Regina has done nothing but heal me and take perfect care of me", Emma answered simply.

"Good, anything else to discuss or can we get out of this place? Being so close to the Evil Queen freaks me out", Grumpy retorted with a huff.

Emma's green eyes blazed as she replied "she is not the Evil Queen anymore" with her jaw set tight.

"Of course not," Red replied with her hands held out in a calming gesture. "Forgive Grumpy, he's a bit… set in his ways."

"Well, he and all of you will have to come to terms with that Regina has changed and that she and I will rule the kingdom together as fair and caring rulers now. Which brings us to the topic of my coronation", Emma stated and was proud of her smooth change of topic.

The Blue Fairy pursed her lips and said "a coronation seems strange in this case, wouldn't a wedding suffice" in clipped tones.

Emma glared at her but spoke calmly as she replied "we will do both simultaneously, actually. Regina and I will marry next month and I will be crowned at the end of the ceremony."

The Blue fairy sucked in breath loudly and Grumpy and Doc both stared open-mouthed. Red smiled and clapped her hands and exclaimed "you're getting married, how lovely."

Emma smiled shyly but joyfully at her and added "yes, I thought we might as well. It will make me being Queen more official and it will make the babies legitimate as well."

The Blue Fairy spluttered "the bab…the babies?!"

Emma nodded and put her hand on her stomach as she stared into Blue's piercing little eyes. "Yes, I'm having triplets."

"But… how... I mean... what happened... I mean…" Blue continued spluttering.

Emma grinned to herself and explained in a voice of an adult explaining something to a child. "Well you see, when magic adults love each other they sometimes do things to show how much they are in love. And then babies are made!"

Red stood up and strode over to Emma to embrace the younger woman where she sat. Shocked but happy Emma returned the embrace and as they parted Red quietly said "congratulations".

"Yes, congratulations!" Doc added and cheered. Grumpy just stared at him, still not convinced that the daughter of his beloved Snow White should be affiliated with the woman who was indirectly responsible for Snow's death.

The Blue Fairy looked more knocked out than she did that time Emma punched her. Emma looked at her, trying to ascertain if the little sparkling creature was having some sort of fit. Soon the fairy looked back at her and with a pinched and obviously faked smile she muttered "congratulations".

Emma rubbed her stomach again to get the comfort of not being alone. She reminded herself that she was a grown woman with a family now, Blue didn't have any power of her anymore.

Doc grinned as he loved babies and asked "what will the royal brood be called?"

Emma smiled as she thought about Henry making suggestions every other day and replied "we aren't sure yet. It will be two girls and a boy and we are open to suggestions. We want to make the kingdom feel as if they have a say in the matter." The last part was only a white lie as SHE did want the kingdom to have a say while Regina had just defiantly muttered "they're our children. We'll name them all  _Henryella_  if we want."

"Snow", Grumpy immediately said and stared challengingly at Emma. The blonde met his gaze straight on and agreed "yes, Regina suggested that too. I'm glad you agree with her. That is settled then, whichever girl looks more like my mother will be named Snow White. My father in law wants to name the boy Henry II and so that leaves only the third girl. Think of names and ask people you meet what they think, then bring some suggestions for the next audience and we will consider them."

Emma hoped that no one would suggest Eva or a name referring to her grandmother. She herself had asked about that and seen Regina's face fall at the memory of the woman who even when dead made her feel so inadequate. Emma hadn't realised how much sadness and rejection still lingered in Regina at the thought of how her husband had shunned her as she never lived up to her predecessor, his beloved Eva. No, that was off limits. They had a name showing Emma's lineage for one of the girls and a name showing Regina's lineage in Henry but the third name… that was more of a challenge.

"Over to another point of business that concerns the children", Emma continued the audience. "Regina has asked for her friend Maleficent to be a godmother."

There were gasps in the room, clearly Maleficent's name was known to these four. Emma ignored the sounds of shock and dismay and continued "I would like to request a godmother too, so that if something were to happen to me and Regina the children would be looked after by someone she trusts and someone I trust. Red, would you do us the honour of being the second godmother?"

Surprised due to their short acquaintance Red just looked at her with big eyes. For a moment Emma worried that the tall brunette would say no but then the lycan showed a big, brilliant smile and breathed "of course, I would be honoured to be godmother to the little Snow and her siblings."

Emma dipped her head in acknowledgment and mumbled "that's settled then" as the overflow of emotion in the room was making her uncomfortable.

"Let's get off this sentimental topic of conversation and discuss more solemn matters", Emma said and straightened in her chair. "As you may have heard, we believe we have a definite lead on the whereabouts of Joan Cox, the woman who orchestrated my fall about a month and a half ago."

"About time!" Grumpy exclaimed.

Emma glared at him and soon he lowered his head in contrition. She let her gaze wander from one person to the next as she explained "it seems that she has been hiding with family in a town just on the border of a neighbouring kingdom. However, she was spotted in a tavern there by a member of the royal guard last night. He followed her to a cottage and watched her go in so that is where she should be apprehended as we speak."

"And what will become of her when she is captured?" Red asked while searching Emma's face as she waited for an answer.

Emma knew how important this was. This action would show how she and Regina planned to rule the kingdom. They would have to be brutal enough to show that they would not allow attempted murders on the royal family but at the same time seem fair and law-abiding.

"There is no officially set precedent for how this crime is punished in our kingdom but historically murders and attempted murders on monarchs have been punishable by death. However, there may be mitigating circumstances in this case and we have to consider that I was not royalty at the time, in fact some might argue that Mrs Cox might have still seen me as a maid, so all in all we will have to see what the old bat has to say for herself and judge her after that. Whatever the outcome will be I promise that the proceedings will take place in the open for all of the kingdom to see. We have nothing to hide."

"Good", Red said with a smile. "Your loyal subjects will all respect your ruling on the matter, I'm sure."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence, I hope you are right. Now, if there is no further business I suggest we return to our normal day", Emma finished with as much authority as she could muster.

Everyone agreed and the meeting ended as the two dwarves, the fairy and Red all walked out in succession. Emma stayed in the library, gently patted her stomach and wondered if Regina was finished in her meetings soon. She wanted them to be together when they heard about the outcome of the chase for Joan Cox.


	59. Chapter 59

When they were finally inside and away from prying eyes Emma leant her head against the cold stone wall and closed her eyes.

Regina walked up to her and gently placed her hands on the blonde's shoulders before whispering "I'm sorry, my love. I didn't want you to ever know this feeling, I didn't want you to ever feel like you have blood on your hands. It's not a pleasant feeling to say the least."

Emma clenched her jaw. She knew that they had done the only thing they could under the circumstances but she still felt like someone had spooned a bit of her soul out of her body.

They had just been told that Joan Cox was dead. When the royal guards had come for her she had confronted them and said that they would never take her back to  _that excuse of a castle_. She had thrown a cooking pot filled with boiling water at two of the guards and made a run for it, only to have an arrow shot straight into her lower back by another guardsman who had been posted up on a nearby hill in case the woman tried to escape.

He had meant to shoot the arrow to stop her but it hit something vital inside the bitter old woman and her blood oozed out of her at such a speed that when she was brought back to the castle she was already deathly pale. The crowd that had gathered to see the trial saw her being carried in on the back of a horse and they saw her splutter blood as she cursed the two Queens or as she called them  _the_   _cruel children playing royalty._

There was no doubt in anyone's mind that the woman had been guilty of her crimes as she relished in what she had done and kept spewing profanities and curses under her dying breath. When she finally succumbed to her wound and blood loss the crowd filtered out and went home, their bloodlust satiated and a feeling of justice having been carried out.

Emma wasn't so easily satisfied. This wasn't how it was meant to happen. The trial was meant to show their new direction, their new start. Emma had hoped that Mrs Cox would be contrite and say that Hollins had been the mastermind behind the plan. She had hoped, out of mercy and not weakness, that they wouldn't have to kill her. Having her rot in a cell would be punishment enough Emma felt, this castle had seen enough death. But it would seem the castle disagreed with her on that.

Emma turned and buried herself in Regina's embrace. The older woman kissed her hair, breathed in the scent of roses at Emma's neck and mumbled that this was no one's fault.

Emma wasn't crying. She just felt cold and frightened, a sensation she tried to explain to Regina. "I… I just feel as if this is a bad omen. This isn't how our marriage was meant to start."

Regina frowned but whispered "it's not how our marriage will start, my sweetest. We are not even to be wed for another two days. These are hard times in a harsh world and I fear you will see more blood in your time as Queen but I know that you will do all you can to be a fair and good ruler and that is what matters" into Emma's hair.

Suddenly there was a quiet cough. Emma and Regina broke apart to see from where the noise came and there was Agnes, shifting her weight from one foot to the other and biting her lip.

Emma gave her young friend a faint smile and was just about to ask if there was anything the girl wanted when Agnes worked up the courage to speak. "I'm sorry to interrupt. But you see… me and Billy… we thought that maybe we could turn this day around a little."

Regina looked at her with surprise and enquired "and just how to you propose to do that?"

Agnes gave a little shiver despite that Regina's tone had been as close to friendly as it ever got when she spoke to her servants. "Well, remember that you said that we could marry. I mean not you and me, your Majesty! Um, I mean, me and Billy of course!"

Regina rolled her eyes and sighed while Emma tried to stifle a giggle. "I am fully aware that you are marrying Billy and not  _me_ , dear. Now get to the point please", Regina said with all the patience she could muster.

"You see, we want to do it soon. Because we want to try and have little ones, just like you two are", Agnes spluttered.

Emma grinned and added "but you want to wait and to do it within wedlock."

Regina looked at Emma and tried to hide a smile as she said "how commendable! Nice to see that certain people still have some sense of decorum. There are far too many young harlots getting into a family state without being wed these days."

Emma slapped Regina's arm hard and kept grinning, most of her grief and worry evaporated for now. There was nothing like a healthy dose of life and love to chase away the ghosts of ill tidings and death.

Agnes looked confused at the turn the conversation was taking and worried the sleeve of her dress with her fingers. Emma saw her discomfort and tried to put as much warmth into her smile as possible when she said "go on, you want to marry as soon as you can..."

Agnes took a deep breath, looked straight into Emma's sea-green eyes and replied "yes! So we were wondering if we could maybe do it today? We would only need the Queen to officiate and hear us say our vows. Billy's sister Hetty and the cook, Mrs Havisham, have agreed to be witnesses. According to Mrs Havisham that should be all that we need to be married?"

Emma frowned. "Well yes, I do believe that is all that you need. But I am not officially Queen yet so I don't know why you are looking at me, Agnes."

Regina sighed once more and smiled sadly as she quietly replied "she is looking at you because she is afraid of me and doesn't dare to ask me to officiate the wedding. Right, go find Mrs Havisham, Billy and this… Hetty and meet us in the Great Hall. Unless you want to have some more time to find proper wedding garments and rings?"

Agnes forced herself to face the brunette and calmly reply "we have the rings, your Majesty. We have saved up for them for months now and my Billy finally bought a pair from a traveling silversmith a fortnight ago. We can't afford any other clothes though, so this will do, your Majesty."

This time it was Emma who sighed. "No, it won't. After everything you've done for me I am not likely to let you get married in a soot-covered maid's dress. With a little help from Regina I should be able to make you a lovely dress and a handsome doublet for Billy."

Agnes beamed at her friend and so it was all decided. An hour later they were gathered in the Great Hall. Regina had suggested that all servants who did not have tasks which needed their immediate attention would take half an hour to attend the impromptu ceremony.

Agnes was beautiful in a simple yet lovely sunflower-yellow dress with a cream bodice corset on top and Billy looked more handsome than ever in a matching doublet. Regina had a musty old book containing the wedding rituals of their kingdom and read from it with some discomfort, clearly not use to officiating weddings.

She had explained to Emma that while she had watched Leopold do it a few times she had never actually wed a couple herself. She had explained this by that very few young lovers wanted to say they were wed by the Evil Queen. Emma had been happy that Agnes and Billy was the first couple Regina would marry, after all Billy owed his livelihood and his correct gender to her and without Billy's and Agnes' help Emma and Regina might not have been able to rebuild their relationship. It all seemed to make sense as she thought about it.

While Emma watched the quiet ceremony end in a kiss and heard the onlookers clap and cheer she wished that her own marriage could be as sweet and easy. But sadly, royalty meant pomp and circumstance and there would be no escaping a giant wedding dress for either bride.


	60. Chapter 60

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Now we come to the wedding ceremony. I am not very well versed in neither historic weddings nor fairy tale ones so please bear with me here. I should mention that I don't see there being any religion in EF, so the wedding will of course be quite different from what many of us are used to seeing (says the woman who got married at the registrar's office.)

The elaborate wedding was tomorrow and there was still a lot to finalise and complete. Regina had refused to get her dress fitted the normal way, seamstresses swarming around her feet reminded her too much of the last time she wore a wedding dress. It brought back memories of the constant feeling of dying inside as she mourned Daniel but could not show it, memories of hating those around her who would not let her love or even grieve but instead imprisoned her in a marriage she dreaded.

Before falling asleep last night, Emma had coiled her lithe limbs around her and while their legs were dovetailing Emma's sleepy voice had sighed the words "I wish our wedding could be as easy and sweet as Billy's and Agnes' was."

Regina had kissed her hair, as she so often did these days, and agreed fully. A fast and simple ceremony, just binding them together and making their love official, that was all she wanted. But they had a kingdom to appease.

The castle had been slowly preparing for weeks but there still seemed to be a manic hustle and bustle outside the door now. She could hear whispers about cakes and dusty chandeliers and closed her eyes to block it all out, she needed to focus. Tomorrow had to go right, it had to be perfect for Emma and her own bad memories of weddings couldn't cloud their special day.

In a way it was a relief that Emma wasn't looking forward to the ceremony either, growing up in such an isolated and quiet environment the blonde wasn't overly fond of large crowds and being expected to behave in a certain way in them.

Suddenly the blonde in question stormed into their chambers and with a pained look whined "why hasn't someone asked us to choose our wedding chalice before? Why does everything have to be done today?"

Regina tried to hide her inner turmoil and give a light hearted laugh before saying "I suppose we have been busy with other things and they didn't want to disturb us?"

Emma looked at her soon-to-be-wife and her face fell. The fake smile that Regina was wearing didn't reach the deep brown eyes and it looked out of place, as if someone had painted it on the brunette's beautiful features.

"What's wrong?" Emma asked with a frown.

Regina was about to reply  _oh nothing_  but she saw the warning look on Emma's face and muttered "bad memories".

Emma walked over, cupped Regina's face in her hands and kissed her tenderly. As their lips parted the younger woman whispered "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that I am of the same blood as the last person who married you and who made you so miserable".

Regina looked at her in shock. "Oh dearest, none of this is your fault! Blood or no blood, you are nothing like Leopold! You're considerate, clever, sexy, witty, pregnant with my children and you know about being… damaged. Oh and let's not forget that you are young, in this case I am the old fossil marrying the young, pretty thing."

Emma was going to point out that at 25, she could by no means be considered a young bride in the Enchanted Forest but she refrained. "I might be younger than you but you are most certainly the pretty thing in this marriage. I mean just look at the rear garden", Emma joked and took a firm grip on Regina's behind before adding "and the balcony is astonishing as well" as she stared happily into Regina's cleavage.

Regina pursed her lips and slapped Emma's back with her palms but couldn't stop herself from smiling inwardly at the blonde's clumsy attempts to distract and entertain her.

Emma leant her forehead against Regina's and whispered "we'll get through this ceremony and then it will be just you and me again. I promise that I will treat you with all the love and respect that you deserve for the rest of your life. This marriage will be a happy one for the both of us simply because we love each other and we will both work on making the other one happy."

Regina's voice dropped low and broke slightly as she asked "and my… darker side?"

"That will be kept in check by the both of us. You're not an evil creature, Regina. You were just moulded into being one. Now you have the chance to mould yourself into whatever  _you wish to be_."

"I wish to be the person you will continue to love and cherish", Regina replied in a small voice, sounding for a moment nothing like the impressive Queen she was.

"Well that's already done so move on to the next item on the list!" Emma replied with a big puppy smile.

Regina laughed and with a very fetching leer whispered "next on the list is  _the wedding night_ ".

Emma blushed but gave a small, shy smirk. "Ah, about that. I'm afraid your wife is not pure, she lost her maidenhood to this rogue of a woman who plucked her up on the streets and stole her away to her castle to have her wicked way with her."

"Good, I have no time for inexperienced girls. I prefer my mounts broken in", Regina replied with an evil grin.

Emma gave a loud mock-gasp and picked Regina up to throw her on the bed and make her pay for that comment with kisses, tickles and bites.

* * *

Finally the day of the wedding came. Regina was surprised to find herself waking up with a small core of excitement in her heart and as she looked down on the blonde tangle of hair splayed out on her chest she knew that the girl under all that hair was the reason for it. Emma's ability to make anything bearable really was remarkable, or perhaps it was love she had to thank for this feeling. It amounted to the same thing in the end, it meant that Emma was the one to thank.

When they were awake and had feasted on a large breakfast in the dining hall they returned up to their chambers to change out of their sleepwear and robes to wedding gowns.

Emma yawned and mumbled "can't we get married in britches? Then I could guarantee that I won't slip and fall on my face."

Regina gave her a reproachful look but smiled without comment. She brought her hand up to give its magic wave and soon she was adorned in a deep blue gown. The dress was fitted with a corset at the waist as usual and plumped up Regina's décolletage to a very distracting degree. The gown had intricate details in yellow gold and a train that looked like it was peppered with gold dust. Emma just stared at it and mumbled something which sounded like "ogre's balls".

"Don't curse on your wedding day, Miss Swan", Regina admonished her but smirked at the effect the dress had on Emma.

Ignoring Emma's staring at the dress, and not so subtle check to see how it fitted around Regina's derriere, she continued "I think blue is a good choice. Traditional wedding colour with a history of purity but not with any pretences of the risk of staining of the dreadful colour white. My purity is not in my virginity, it is in my love for you and that cannot be so easily stained."

"Oh, so should I have blue too?" Emma asked, currently more interested in what her own dress would look like than the political stance behind the colour.

Regina gave another wave and her hair and makeup was suddenly elaborate but less daunting than her usual style. It made her looker softer and warmer but still just as regal. "I don't know, my love. What would you like?" Regina asked distractedly as she surveyed the results in the mirror.

Emma looked down at her own hands and took a deep breath. Could she do this? What if she failed and ended up transforming her legs into crab legs? She closed her eyes, thought of a dress and waved her hands slightly frantically.

Regina was just about to ask her what she was doing when she saw that Emma was now wearing a light blue gown which mirrored Regina's yellow gold details in white gold. The dress was higher over the chest than Regina's but made up for it by leaving Emma's shoulders bare instead. Emma's slightly rounded, pregnant belly was visible in the dress but by no means the thing that most drew the eye. The blonde looked ravishing with the tone of the blue in the dress matching the tone of the sea-green of her eyes and making her blonde hair seem to gleam in its brightness.

"Oh. That is… commendable work, Emma. And so  _unbelievably beautiful._  I mean you are unbelievably beautiful in the dress, not just the dress by itself. Oh my exquisite darling, I am going to be fighting the other guests off of you all day!" Regina breathed as she looked Emma up and down several times.

Emma smiled smugly and bit her lip at the attention Regina's gaze was lavishing on her body. "Well, it's a good thing that you are so handy with the fireballs then. Oh by the way, I didn't make the dress flame retardant so be careful!"

Regina raised her eyebrows as the blonde's cocky comment but soon forgot about it as she decided to fix Emma's hair herself. "May I… braid your hair and put it up?"

"Why of course, go ahead and magic me up!" Emma beamed, unsure of why Regina would even ask.

"No. No, I meant if I may do it… by hand. I want it… to mean more", Regina said gravely.

Emma thought about all the times she had coiffured Regina's hair and agreed with a warm smile.

* * *

Dressed and prepared in every way they stood in the Great Hall, both nervous but making a supreme effort not to show it.

The vast room was filled with tables accommodating dignitaries from kingdoms all over the realm. Regina could see many faces she recognized, some friendly but many not. Everyone invited had come but she suspected it was more out of curiosity or diplomatic courtesy than any real wish to attend the wedding. Regina could see the hate in many eyes facing hers and so she put on her Evil Queen mask and just arrogantly stared them all down with a haughty smile.

_Just a few more hours_ , she thought to herself and tried to keep her eyes trained on the few truly friendly faces in the room. In the far corner she could see Maleficent and her large brood of children. They were all in human form for now and ranged from a woman about Emma's age to a small boy of about three. The little one clearly wasn't as used to the change from dragon to human and kept blowing little puffs of smoke through his toddler nostrils.

Maleficent's presence meant that Aurora and Phillip hadn't attended and there would probably be diplomatic mayhem between the kingdoms over that, but that didn't matter to Regina right now. Mal's half-mocking and half-sympathetic smile was one of the few signs of friendship in the room and Regina needed it. She could also see King Midas daughter, the soon to be Queen Abigail smiling courteously but genuinely from the corner of the room and Regina smiled back and tried to mean it this time.

Then it was time. The guests grew silent as the musicians played haunting and serene songs which spoke of the gravity of the situation, there would be plenty of time for rowdy songs and music for dancing when the feast began after the ceremony.

Emma stood a few paces in front of Regina and stared transfixed at the ornate, golden chalice placed on the alter-like table in front of them. Regina walked up to her and put her warm hand on the blonde's corseted waist. "Breathe, my love", she whispered and Emma smiled at her, suddenly calmer. They were now ready to begin the simple but important rituals that would tie them together.

When two young royals were betrothed the residing King/Queen would normally wed them. If that was not possible there was an alternate ritual which included the couple saying their vows and sealing their marriage by drinking from the same chalice and then signing their names to a marriage charter showing the royal bloodlines of the kingdom. With that done it was time for the part of the couple who was not already officially royal to be crowned. However Emma and Regina had decided to crown each other, to make it more equal and to mark that now began their time to rule together.

So Emma solemnly promised her mind, body and soul to Regina and then with trembling hands placed a ruby-clad yellow gold crown onto the dark mahogany locks. Regina in her turn made the same promises and placed a white gold crown, adorned with large sapphires on the blonde head. They exchanged rings that matched their crowns, solemnly drank from the chalice filled with red wine to symbolise that they were now of the same royal blood and then signed their names on the large, old parchment. With that they were married in the eyes of their shared kingdom.

Then the extravagant ten course feast began, without any dishes of Swan, and lasted until midnight. The music was loud and the guests became increasingly drunk, to the point where most seemed to forget to cast vicious looks at the former Evil Queen and instead began to gossip about the magic that kept Regina looking so young and whether she had wed Emma to legitimise her claim to the throne, make her offspring born within wedlock or actually just for love as was claimed.

Emma and Regina did their best to speak to everyone sat at their table and to seem as if they were having a marvellous time. Throughout the evening they kept their hands clasped together tightly on the table, showing unity outwardly and support for each other inwardly.

Sat next to Regina was Henry who after too many glasses of wine began to tell amusing tales of Regina's childhood to everyone's mirth. Everyone except Regina kept wanting more stories while the brunette just smiled forcibly and squeezed Emma's hand hard until the blonde kicked her under the table and whispered "not so tight" from the corner of her mouth.

Then it was time for the ritual of bedding the newlyweds. The guests were meant to chase the happy couple up to their marital bed to make sure no one escaped the inevitable and hopefully pleasurable consummation of the marriage, however the guests found that neither women needed any chasing as they were both equally happy to escape the crowd as they were to finally be in each other's arms and celebrate their love in their own perfect way.


	61. Chapter 61

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: Sorry, we will not see the wedding night as someone requested. But this is the second to last chapter of this story and the final chapter will have some sexual contents, hopefully that will make up for me leaving our ladies alone on their wedding night! Now let us get on with the penultimate chapter!

Now that they were safely wedded and Emma was crowned, things calmed down for them both and time steadily but unwaveringly moved on, as time always does, and everything became a wait for the triplets.

While the trees blossomed and filled with fresh green leaves Emma had odd food-cravings and mood swings so powerful they even made Regina quiver in fear at times.

When the first apples grew red on the trees in the royal garden the aches and pains of three little lives trying to fit inside Emma's narrow but strong frame became all-engulfing and to Emma's fury she was told to stay in bed.

As autumn took hold and the leaves fell again Emma felt the size of the castle and finally gave in and allowed Regina to care for her as she had asked to do since the first knew she was pregnant and the blonde's every whim was obeyed. Regina, Henry, Agnes, Billy and even Red were all doing whatever they could to stifle Emma's boredom at being forced to stay still.

Then as the air grew cold and the wind whispered about oncoming snow, the day of the birth finally came. Emma's labour was hard and long but helped along with magic as much as possible. Regina winced at every unpleasant sensation Emma went through and grew ever more testy and aggravated with the midwife and her court physician. Insults and threats flowed like hot water around the brunette as she wrung her hands and begged the stars for the best outcome.

Then there they were, their three little children, perfectly pink and healthy. They all screamed as if in competition of which one could get more of their mother's attention. As soon as Emma was sure that they were all healthy and safe she fell asleep, exhausted after the long labour but glad for the magical help that had kept her alive and somewhat energised through the ordeal.

Regina wouldn't leave the children's side, she never seemed to tire from looking at them, kissing them and changing their little linen diapers. Suddenly it was as if the world had fallen away and revealed the one thing that mattered, Emma and these three little royal babies. It was like a fruit being peeled to show the sweet plumpness under the bitter shell and Regina realised that the emptiness in her chest was so filled with love that it threatened to spill out and drown everyone around her.

When Emma was awake, had eaten something and finally felt a little better, Regina placed one baby in her arms and in reverent voice whispered "Henry II, meet your beautiful mother". Emma laughed and kissed little Henry's nose watching him blink irately as one of her blonde locks tickled his face.

Then Regina took him back and placed him in the luxurious, hand carved cot that she had the royal carpenters make. It had small wooden wheels and so she could take the triplets with her to sleep in whatever room she was currently in.

Regina picked up another baby, this one was the bigger of the two girls. She had fine black hair on her scalp and while the midwife had said that it would probably fall off Regina had still seen it as a sign. She placed the half-sleeping girl in Emma's arms and whispered "Snow White II, meet your brave mother".

Emma looked almost startled at the girl. So this was the child they would name after her mother, how strange it felt to see her. Emma realised that considering Regina's history with Snow it must feel even stranger for her, but she knew that they would both get used to it. The world once again had a Snow White in it and hopefully this one would live a long and happy life.

Emma looked at Regina who was watching little baby Snow lovingly and then handed the baby back. As Regina cradled the girl in her arms she kissed the top of her head gently before laying her next to her brother.

Then Regina picked up the third baby and brought her over to Emma, as she gently laid the small girl in Emma's arms she looked apprehensive. Before Emma had a chance to ask if she was alright Regina firmly but still in a reverential whisper stated "Ruth, meet your loving mother".

Emma took the baby and smiled at the fully awake upturned face before turning back to Regina with a puzzled look. "Ruth?"

Regina nodded, still with that look of apprehension at having made a decision without Emma. "Yes, while you slept I asked someone to delve into the one part of your parentage that I knew little about, your father. That someone was, well as strange as it sounds, he was a prisoner in my mirrors and I had long planned to release him. It's a long story but suffice to say that I promised to set him free and dull his unrequited love for me as soon as he had found this one little missing fact about your father – the name of his mother. Oh Emma, how I begged the stars it wouldn't turn out to be something horrible! When he returned he said that her name had been Ruth, so I… thought that would be the name for our girl."

Emma looked down at the little baby with its kind eyes and nodded. "Yes, she looks a bit like a Ruth. I bet the other two will be the trouble makers, this one is the one who will makes us proud."

Regina laughed. "Don't give them set roles so soon, my sweet. Let them grow up to become whatever is in their fate. Maybe THIS will be the troublemaker", she said and caressed Ruth's pink little hand.

"Just so that I know who will be the next ruler of this land, which one was born first?" Emma asked evenly as she admired the now fidgeting little baby in her arms.

"Snow", Regina said with a quiet sigh. "It would seem that I am to attempt to raise a future Queen named Snow White once again. Let's hope this time has a happier outcome", she softly croaked with her face showing fear and guilt in equal measure.

"Don't fret, my love. You weren't all to blame for what happened, you know that as well as I do. Everything is different now, you said yourself that I am nothing like my grandfather, you are not the woman you were back then and that baby sleeping over there is not the Snow White you knew. This is a completely different person and a completely new beginning. Everything has changed and this time, everything will be right. Not perfect, life never is, but right."

Regina looked at Emma with pain in her eyes but a loving smile on her lips and whispered "yes, this time it will be  _right_."


	62. Chapter 62

Regina walked in and looked fretfully at Emma. "What's wrong? Why did you cancel my council today? Are the children alright?"

As Regina looked around to see the three little ones Emma placed her hand on her wife's and reassured her "everything is fine. The babies are with your father and with Red. I didn't want to leave Henry alone with them so I asked Red to stay with them too. More to look after Henry than the little ones, really."

Regina smiled back now, calmer but yet confused as to what this all meant. "So, why did you send for me? Why aren't  _we_  with the children?"

"Because I wanted to have you to myself today. All day. We spend so much time with ruling the kingdom, looking after the triplets and your father that I haven't been able to enjoy my wife in a more… carnal way."

Regina raised an eyebrow and an impossibly sensual and smug smile adorned her features. "Oh, I see. So you cleared our schedules and got the children out of our way so that you could satiate your dirty lusts… why Queen Emma, how perfectly sinful."

Emma felt her heart pound hard at the sexy purr in Regina's dulcet tones. Suddenly the need she had for Regina grew even stronger. She looked Regina up and down, took in the black, lacy dress that clung to the slender limbs and gorgeous curves of her wife and felt unbearably  _hungry_.

"Well… I have this craving and I have been trying to fill it with honey cakes, with honeyed milk and even with pure honeycomb but to no avail… and so I realised that it was your honey I wanted. I want to lay down, with plenty of time and lick the warm dripping honey out of your beautiful honeypot", Emma purred while looking at Regina with heavy lidded eyes.

Regina smiled wolfishly, oh how she had missed Emma wanting her like this and having the opportunity to act on it. Ever since Emma gave birth to the triplets their level of intimacy had dropped. They still made love, but it was tender hurried moments in their bed at night. Whispered words of affection and quickly moving fingers satisfying the worst of the need. It had been far too long since Regina was last able to really play and  _take her time_.

Emma saw Regina's dark eyes grow darker and darker as the brunette planned what she could do to her wife if she had an entire day to play with her. As if on command, Emma's nipples hardened so completely and so quickly that it almost hurt. But she knew that whatever Regina was planning she would have to put her caveat in first. Emma had a particular plan for this day, it was time for Regina to stop trying so hard to be good and just have some fun.

"Regina?" Emma purred and licked her lower lip suggestively.

Regina walked closer until she was close enough to smell the scent of roses on her wife. "Yes, my love?"

"I know how well you keep your dark side under control now. But maybe, we should let the Evil Queen out to play once in a while? Maybe we should let her out to  _play with me_? Here and now?"

Regina looked tempted but uncertain. "Are you sure I can control myself and not go too far?"

"I am sure that you couldn't possibly go too far for my taste... my Queen", Emma said confidently and with her eyes twinkling with mischief. She was ready for where this could lead, in fact she felt like she needed everything and anything Regina could give her.

"Oh, so my darling wife wants to play rough?" Regina purred and raked her eyes over Emma's body.

"Why else would I have married you?" Emma replied with a feral grin and grabbed Regina's waist to pull her closer to her.

Regina kissed her teasingly but lovingly and then ran her hand over Emma's soft cheek and down to take a light but possessive grip on her wife's elegant neck. Emma drew in breath and felt her body show every sign of arousal it was capable of at the act of power.

"Alright. We will let the Evil Queen out to play but on one condition… I don't just want to take your body. I want to take your mind, I want to take your heart, I want to lick your soul until it comes on my lips. I want all of you today and I want you to submit to me willingly and eagerly", Regina growled in her deepest and most hoarse voice.

"Oh yes, my Queen. You can have it all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final note:
> 
> Sorry to leave the story on that erotic cliff-hanger. It had to be that way, as this story seems to have two audiences, one that is ok with smut and one that prefers little to no smut at all. 
> 
> Please join me in my new fanfic, Culltown!  
> As always, you can reach me on my Tumblr where I am Violetscentedwriter and my twitter where I am VioletscentedSQ
> 
> Thank you so much for reading and supporting this story! It's been a journey for all of us and I am so grateful for all the reviews, nice messages and fan art. You have been truly amazing!


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